


Hearts Don't Break Around Here

by hanville



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Falling off a Broom, Family Issues, Fluff, Kpop Idols Cameos, Lee Minho | Lee Know is a Nerd, M/M, Quidditch, Read the Author's Notes, Underage Drinking, angst if you squint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:27:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 47,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25751317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hanville/pseuds/hanville
Summary: Despite Slytherin's association with cowards, Han Jisung has never been one of them.That includes completing a dare on a night that Jisung and his best friends have been drinking a little too much. He has to sneak into the Ravenclaw Tower and steal a piece of clothing from the Hogwarts' heartthrob and the Quidditch captain - Lee Minho. It also includes having to wear it through the next day and Jisung is not the one to back off.So the next day, he marches into the Great Hall wearing Minho's Quidditch hoodie with his Hufflepuff friend giggling by his side. Jisung can see Minho smirk at him, but it's safe to say he's confused. He walks by and says, "What's up, Lee?" and maybe it is then that Minho realizes there's more to school than just Quidditch and studies.The pretty Slytherin, Han Jisung, included.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 36
Kudos: 426





	Hearts Don't Break Around Here

**Author's Note:**

> IMPORTANT STUFFS:  
> — there's a mention of falling down from a broom and some broken bones  
> — there's a scene where a possible?? death is discussed. it's an assumption about someone having passed away  
> — there are mentions of food, underage drinking, kissing
> 
> THEME SONG: think about 'chu by sam kim  
> [full playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0Jmzh9WfzqNUtpVmF1bSvl?si=44kTosWnRBOA-Z4TRDY_9A)
> 
> i should explain how magical world works, at least in this universe. there are a lot of schools and parents (especially of muggleborns) get a whole list with most important info and age when kids should go to study (though you can be a few years younger/older, it doesn't matter that much). so you can basically go to any school in the entire world if you just fit the basic criteria !! :] 
> 
> i swear, this fic has taken me too long to write. it was a quick idea that popped into my head in between writing another longfic and it was supposed to be a short one-shot just to take a break. but, as you can see, things escalated and it's so many words that probably don't make any sense.  
> if you've seen me breaking down while writing this fic and seen me crying and tweeting about how much i actually hate it, no you didn't. no matter how many times i've said i despised it, it's actually my baby and i'll cry if you don't like it. 
> 
> if you like this fic, even just a little, please let me know, it's really motivating!! 
> 
> i've also posted edits on twitter, so if you'd like to see them, they're right [ i hope you enjoy it!](https://twitter.com/HANLlNO/status/1292446783482675200)

Before it even starts, Jisung knows that his sixth year at Hogwarts would be a very different one compared to the previous five. After glancing quickly at the watch on his left hand, Jisung quickens his pace, cursing under his breath. After leaving the car, his sister has overtaken him (not that Jisung has been running then, he definitely has not been and never will be in such hurry to catch the train) and all he sees is her lilac hair, attracting his attention, eye-catching in the crowd of thousands of travelers on King's Cross. Were it not for that color, he would probably have lost her in the mass of people a long time ago.

He sighs heavily, hurriedly throwing ‘excuse me’s to everyone, then sharply shoving between people, trying to make way through the crowd. He hates that his dad has insisted on getting to the station this way — if they'd just teleported using the portkey, they might have made it on time for the first time since school had started.

Eunji is waiting for him in front of platform 9¾ impatiently stamping her foot. As soon as she sees him, she shakes her head scoldingly and walks briskly to push him and the stroller through the wall. Before Jisung can register what is happening, he feels a prickling sensation in his stomach. It passes as quickly as it comes, with the familiar scent of magic only reaching his nose. 

“Jisung,” his twin elbows him, “I’ll see you in the castle.” 

She doesn’t even give him a chance to respond, immediately disappearing into the crowd of people on the platform. He shakes his head with a smile and straightens his sweater, then strides confidently to the train, heading for the familiar side of the Slytherin wagon.

This year, his friends have decided that they won’t be meeting until the yearly feast, with Felix busy with the prefects’ business, and Hyunjin and Jeongin with their sneaky things to discuss. (It’s not that Jisung feels offended that they haven’t included him, not at all.) So he quickly finds the only Slytherin buddy out of his friends, Seungmin, in the compartment they usually occupy and sits down across from him, greeting him with a warm smile. .

A pleasant silence falls between them, as Seungmin lazily flips through the pages of his spell book and Jisung stares out the window as the train starts to move, then begins to accelerate until it leaves London, and all he can see outside the window are the grassy hills.

“I’ll go look for the trolley,” says Seungmin later, setting the book on a small table by the window. “You want something?” Jisung shakes his head, allowing the other Slytherin to leave the compartment freely and close the door quietly behind him.

Maybe Jisung feels a little uncomfortable and uneasy when he’s alone, and Hyunjin'’ loud laughter isn’t irritating his ears. He wonders if Felix has casted a spell on his hair again to make it bright, and if Jeongin still is obsessed with caramel as he has been before the holidays. He hasn’t seen any of them during the summer. Dad has taken him and Eunji on an annual family vacation to Korea, so he hasn’t even had time to owl them and ask if they have been okay. When he’s returned home in August, visiting them hasn’t been the best idea either, because Jisung has never traveled with Floo powder abroad alone, and it so happened that only Seungmin lives in the UK, like him. Visiting Jeongin or Hyunjin during his stay in Korea has been out of limit, too, when he has spent half of his summer in a small town, his sister the only companion.

Interrupting his thoughts, the compartment door slides open with a creak. Jisung notices Felix’s powdery pink hair before he registers what is happening. Felix is grinning when his eyes lie at him and immediately decreases the distance, pulling him into a warm hug. “‘Lin, Jisung, I missed you so bad!” 

Jisung smirks and pushes Felix away from him, studying his bright face carefully. “You changed your hair again,” he states, even though that is the first thing he’s noticed. The other boy nods vigorously. “Every time I see you you look even more like a little fairy.”

Felix pouts at his words, the charming gesture making him seem smaller. “Ah, Sungie, don't be kidding. Hyunjin calling me that is enough.”

Raising his eyebrows up, Jisung says, “You like it when Hyunjin calls you that.” Felix just shakes his head, trying to cover his flushed cheeks with the sleeves of his black robe. He kicks Jisung in the shin lightly, making him jump on one leg, faking pain. Felix quirks an eyebrow, laughter still lingering on his lips.

“See you in the evening,” he throws over his shoulder and smiles charmingly, making Jisung feel warm all over, before leaving him in the compartment alone.

Soon after, Seungmin returns with a huge bag of sweets in his hand. It doesn’t surprise Jisung at all, and—even—for a moment he stares at the Slytherin in adoration, Seungmin always providing him with the biggest amount of food. 

“I’ve met Felix on my way back,” he says, opening the chest under his seat to take out his robes. “He said he’s got muggle alco for tonight.”

Funny. A year back, Seungmin himself has been all against drinking before the first day of classes. At the sudden change of attitude, Jisung isn't going to complain. It’s their penultimate year at Hogwarts, he plans to use all this time one hundred percent, to the limits, with his friends by his side. They don’t have major exams this time, so the responsibility and pressure aren’t as heavy as they have been last year. Jisung doesn’t like pressure.

It’s getting dark outside, but Jisung manages to recognize the way to Hogwarts and states that they should get there soon. Following Seungmin’s footsteps, he puts on the robes that have been lying on the seat next to him and lies down on the empty seat. “Merlin, I wanna be in the castle already,” he groans, closing his eyes. Seungmin humms in agreement, focused on the view outside the window.

The silence in the compartment, broken every now and then by the static sounds of the train moving along the tracks, lulls Jisung to sleep in no time. It feels as if only minutes later Seungmin is poking his cheek to wake him up. He is all ready to leave the train and when Jisung looks out through the fogged window, he sees they have already arrived at the Hogsmeade Station. “I think everyone’s left, pretty much.” 

“You can go ahead, I’ll catch up,” Jisung tells him, already prepared for that strange look Seungmin always gives him. He doesn’t get it; the Slytherin shakes his head in a playful manner and shrugs, eyes soft just like always. 

“I’ll save us a seat at the table.” He leaves the compartment and Jisung straightens on the uncomfortable train seat, bones cracking, making him scrunch his face. He sighs, closing his eyes for another moment. He waits until there’s no one on the train, until the only thing he can hear is his own breathing. 

No one really understands why he always waits for everyone to leave before he gets off himself. Jisung doesn’t understand it, either. It’s just the way things are and he feels better like this — alone, with a moment to gather his thoughts before the new school year officially starts and he’s thrown into a pit full of other students, without any chance to take a break. 

He runs fingers through his brown hair, eyes fluttering open. It’s relatively quiet, no hushed voices and suppressed laughter. Jisung stands up, legs wobbly after hours spent sitting. He fixes the collar of his snow-white shirt and the green tie around his neck, using the window as a mirror. The dark cloak flaps in the evening breeze as he gets off the train, sending shivers down his spine. He shoves his hands into the pockets of his dark jeans, cursing under his breath for forgetting how cold it can get during late summer in Great Britain. 

A dark figure enters his line of sight and he frowns, stopping in his tracks. From the distance (and without his glasses) he can’t recognize the boy yet he squints his eyes, as if that can help. The man suddenly turns his way. Jisung stumbles, embarrassed about being noticed and picks up the pace, walking towards the castle. But with his cheeks flushed red, he can’t get the sight out of his head. Lee Minho has gone blond.

When Jisung finally reaches the door of the Great Hall, he feels like he’s lost his breath. He tries to stabilize his pounding heart and steps into the room. His eyes instantly, out of habit, shoot up to stare at the enchanted ceiling. It seems like the night is more beautiful than ever. He scans the room, the atmosphere overwhelming, and finds Seungmin seated at their usual spot. He makes his way towards the Slytherin table and drops onto the seat next to his friend. 

Seungmin is looking around. “I hate when it gets so loud,” he mutters. Jisung nods in understanding. “Like, what’s stopping you from yelling about how you missed each other and hugging and crying and whatever after the feast? It’s annoying.” 

“Not everyone is as smart as us, Minnie.” Seungmin shoots him a look and he shuts up immediately, yet a smile still wanders across his face. He reaches out to grab a cup of orange juice but is interrupted when Seungmin smacks his hand. 

“The feast hasn’t started yet,” he scolds. Jisung grins at him, gaining an instant eye roll. 

“It has, for me.” 

When Jisung takes a sip of his drink, Headmistress Bae steps out to the front, silencing everyone in the room with a hand gesture. It’s been six years since he’s first seen her do that yet her power still amazes him every time. He doesn’t really pay attention to what she says, having heard the same thing repeated for the past few years. Then, the first years step into the Great Hall, frightened and amazed. Jisung can’t help but snort at their expressions. 

He’s quite bored, head resting on his hand, praying to Merlin for the feast to end quickly. Seungmin saves him from falling asleep by the table, though. He suggests competing against each other and take guesses about kids’ houses before they get sorted. It’s nothing spectacular but Jisung figures anything will be more entertaining than staring into a bowl of mashed potatoes. And his competitive Slytherin nature won’t let him pass the chance to shine. He loses, in the end, not as good with his intuition as he thought he is. Groaning, he observes Seungmin grinning like he’s just won a trip to some tropical island. Yet he promises to get him his favorite cherry ice-cream from the Kitchens in the evening as a reward. 

When the feast is over, everyone in the Great Hall erupts into a buzz, conversations loud, mixing up together. This time Jisung isn’t so bothered by the noise because Jeongin appears in the crowd and waves at them. Seungmin just nods disapprovingly as Jisung pulls the younger boy into his arms, ignoring his protests. They exchange comments about the sorting and vacation for a moment and then Hyunjin joins in and Felix is trotting behind him, greeting everyone he’s meeting on his way. “Let’s meet up in an hour near the Hufflepuff common room,” says Felix. Hyunjin has managed to convince their roommates to let them use their dormitory for the evening and Jisung can only assume he has already set everything up so they can get comfortable.

The next time they see each other, Jeongin is waiting for them at the entrance of the common room wearing sweatpants and a pink sweatshirt. He’s got a bag in his hand, probably full of food.

Upon entering Hyunjin and Felix’s dormitory, Jisung stops in his tracks. It’s different than what he’s used to, full of flickering lights and candles, blankets and pillows and a small coffee table in the center of the circular rug. Usually they just lay on the carpet with chips all over the floor, but Jisung isn’t going to complain. It was snug and cozy and Jisung likes it too much. 

Felix is already sitting on the floor and gestures for them to come inside and sit down. “Hyunjin will be back soon,” he says. Jisung immediately takes a seat next to him and puts the sweets he’s brought from the house elves on the table, and then Jeongin and Seungmin do the same. They immediately jump into comfortable conversations, sharing their vacation memories and complaining about classes schedule.

When Hyunjin returns, he finds them pouring wine into glasses. His hair is messy and as he sits down, Felix’s hand reaches out to run through it with his fingers. “What are the plans today?” he asks.

“We could watch a movie,” Hyunjin suggests.

“Movies are boring! The only cool thing about them is that you can cuddle.” Jisung giggles at Jeongin stupid comment, head resting on Felix’s lap. 

“I have an idea, but we need to loosen up first. Like, for real,” Seungmin says, and Jeongin bursts out laughing. 

“What are you planning, Kim Seungmin?”

Jisung, on the other hand, doesn’t pay them any mind. He shrugs and reaches out for a bottle of Muggle beer. That's why he was here — to loosen up. Like, for real. He chugs down the beverage pretty quickly, putting the empty bottle aside. 

Hours later, when the sky enchanted up on the ceiling has begun to shine, scattered with stars and their rumors about the Hogwarts students have taken a different turn, Seungmin (who is not doing as well as he’s thinking) presents his genius idea to them.

“Playing truth or daring is boring.”

“Maybe the Muggle one, but we are wizards, baby.” Jisung giggles. Seungmin has a habit of addressing people with petnames when he’s intoxicated. Felix shrugs and sits up to lean on the table around which they’re sitting. Hyunjin takes one of the empty bottles and sets it in the middle of the messed circle they’re making, and then they stare at it for a moment without any further plans. Jisung doubts the idea and wonders if it can turn out any good. Judging on the sluggish expressions of his friends, none of them really fancies Hyunjin’s idea, yet they don’t have anything else to do. (Note to self: Jisung should remind them to figure out their future activities before the actual meeting.) 

Hyunjin, who’s the oldest of them, does the first spin and the bottle lands on Jisung. “Truth,” he says with a shit eating grin and they all groan.

“It’ll be so boring,” Felix wails.

Hyunjin shushes them. “Out of us, who’d you like to swap bodies with?” 

“Seungmin,” Jisung blurts out, shrugging as if it’s common knowledge. Everyone looks at him expectantly to elaborate so he sighs, mockingly exasperated. “He’s really hot. Like, if I had to choose the hottest person at Hogwarts, it’d be him.” 

Seungmin pretends to throw up at his words yet Jisung sends him a wink, unmoved. He leaves the younger boy’s reddened cheeks without a comment and reaches out to spin the bottle. “Yah, Felix. Truth or dare?” 

“Truth. Just don’t embarrass me,” he says, taking a sip of wine out of his glass, probably ‘for courage’. 

“As if you could be embarrassing in this group,” Jisung snorts. “Well, who was your first kiss?” He ignores the annoyed groans of his bored friends, eyes fixed on Felix. 

“I guess… it was right before the fourth year. With a girl from my old neighbourhood. It was really bad since none of us could actually kiss, so…” 

“And now you know how to kiss?” Hyunjin quirks an eyebrow, propped on his elbow. 

“If you’re so curious, I’ll show you.” 

“Gross!” Jeongin shrieks. “You guys seriously should stop flirting right in front of my damn face.” Felix gives him a look that Jisung can’t decipher, reaches for the jelly beans on the floor and eats them like nothing’s happened.

They keep spinning the bottle and yelling when someone comes up with a good question or a dare that’s completely gross but is completed anyway. Jisung can’t pay attention. It’s like his brain goes into a haze; he laughs but can’t tell why and boos when his friends do. His whole body is relaxed, fingers lingering around his glass of wine. The warmth spreading around his body as he takes another sip is like heaven. 

When Seungmin spins, it lands on Jisung. “Truth,” he says again. Jeongin groans, throwing his head back. 

“Pathetic. There’s no fun with you.” 

Jisung throws a chips at him. “I won’t take the dare ‘cause knowing you guys, you’ll make me do some pitifully embarrassing things like kissing or yelling in the hallway that I have a crush on someone.” 

“As if someone here’d like to kiss you,” says Hyunjin with fake disgust.

Jisung smirks and makes a kissy face towards him, “Don’t even deny it, Jinnie.” Felix bursts out laughing like it’s the joke of century. Hyunjin scrunches his face and gags, sending a middle finger Jisung’s way. 

“Just admit you're a coward,” Jeongin sing-songs.

Jisung might be many things, but he is definitely not a coward. Despite Slytherin being associated with them, Jisung isn’t one. So he takes another sip of wine and speaks out with a fierce expression, “Come on, Seungmin. Give me a dare.” 

Seungmin thinks for a moment and then smiles cheekily; Jisung realizes he might be in danger. “Sneak into one of the common rooms with someone and steal a piece of clothing and wear it all day tomorrow.” Hyunjin whistles and Jeongin bursts out laughing, patting Jisung on the shoulder. 

“Whose?” Jisung says boldly, only hoping it won’t be Gryffindor or a very annoying student who could hex him for stealing their clothes.

Seeing that Seungmin can’t come up with someone interesting, Jeongin exclaims, “Lee Minho! Sneak up on Lee Minho.” Jisung blinks. He grabs a bottle and takes a huge sip of wine straight from it. He stands up and pulls Jeongin by the hand, lifting him up. “Come on, we’re going on this mission together.”

Jeongin puffs out his cheeks, looking as if he wants to kick Jisung right in the face. He takes a deep breath and puts on the most fake smile they have ever seen. He grabs the Slytherin’s hand, leading him out of the dormitory. Hyunjin, Felix and Seungmin, trying to be quiet, leave after them, watching as they get out of the Hufflepuff common room stumbling repeatedly.

Jeongin gets them to the Ravenclaw Tower in a shortcut, through a passage behind a curtain next to the kitchen. He walks ahead, lighting the way with his wand. Jisung feels dizzy, but Jeongin looks quite stable, only stumbling a few times and regaining his balance in no time. He smiles at the portrait pretending to be sorry, and it only scolds them for wandering around the castle at this time without mentioning Jisung not really being a Ravenclaw. They manage to get through when Jeongin solves the riddle, muttering thanks for giving them an easy one.

As they enter the warm and welcoming common room, Jeongin breathes a sigh of relief. He doesn’t have the strength to use his brain at this time of day and while intoxicated. He looks around the room, nodding as he doesn’t notice anyone around. He and Jisung quietly walk over to the boys’ dorms, the stairs more dangerous in their state. They manage to climb up and when they finally end up standing in front of the right door, Jeongin turns off the light coming out of his wand using the ‘ _Nox_ ’ spell. They stand still and quiet in the darkness for a moment, calming their breaths. 

“You’ll do it?” Jeongin asks, making Jisung roll his eyes. 

“I’m not that drunk. I’ll be quick.”

The younger Ravenclaw nods, but Jisung can’t see it in the dark, so he just whispers, stopping himself for slapping his own face: “His bed is on the left, just by the window. Now, go.” 

Jisung doesn’t even get a chance to wonder how Jeongin knows that, because the boy has already quietly opened the door and is pushing him inside. Jisung struggles to keep his balance and unintentionally lets a curse slip past his lips. He pauses mid-step when someone on one of the beds moves in their sleep. Luckily, it only ends in indecipherable muttering. Jisung rolls his eyes and heads left as instructed by Jeongin.

The bed he’s looking at is covered with a curtain on one side, but that doesn’t stop the light from pouring onto the boy. The moon illuminates Lee Minho’s face, giving him a magical glow. His mouth is slightly parted, and he’s hugging a cat plushie that makes Jisung stop in his tracks just so he can take a good look. Minho is mumbling something in his sleep and frowning, but Jisung has mentally slapped himself three times in the face already for not making it quick. He turns towards the wall to get a piece of clothing from the tree by Minho’s bed.

His eyes fall on a black hoodie with an embroidered blue eagle on the chest. Jisung is sure the sweatshirt has the boy’s name on its back. The players from the Slytherin Quidditch team also have a personalized wardrobe. Therefore, Jisung doesn’t even cast a single glance at the bed, removing the hoodie from the hanger with a quick movement. The metal creaks. Jisung scrunches his face, body going still. Hurriedly, he hugs the soft clothing to his chest and runs out of the dormitory.

Jeongin is waiting for him at the door, leaning against the wall. “I started thinking you wouldn’t get out of there,” he whispered, closing the door to the room behind him. “What did you take?”

Jisung grins mischievously and unfolds the hoodie, spreading it out and showing the blue letters on the back, forming the words '’LEE 05’. Jeongin opens his mouth in shock and holds out his hand for Jisung to high-five. 

“He’ll have a heart attack tomorrow.”

“He will when he sees me. And I’m not letting him alone.” Jeongin chuckles, leading them out of the common room. The portrait guarding the entrance protests, whispering about them getting into trouble and putting the Ravenclaws to shame, but Jeongin just waves the man off. Jisung walks beside him, heart still pounding fast in his chest. With the sweatshirt slung over his shoulder, he can smell it, pleasantly irritating his nose. He’s intoxicated with alcohol, and the sweet scent of oranges makes him feel sleepy.

When they reach the Hufflepuff common room and then Hyunjin and Felix’s dormitory, the boys sitting on the floor immediately scream in surprise, eyes landing on the sweatshirt over Jisung’s shoulder. They spend the rest of the night laughing outrageously as they finish off the last of the wine and honey beer. Jisung dozes off with the smell of fresh oranges lulling him to sleep. 

Jisung wakes up the next morning cuddled up to Seungmin, his head throbbing unpleasantly. He usually isn’t the first to wake up after their hangouts, so he lies back down and enjoys the silence, calming him down. He knows Hyunjin will wake up in a moment and immediately give them a healing potion, saving their day from becoming a total disaster.

Hyunjin likes potions as does Jisung. Maybe a little more. He has even signed up for extracurricular classes for the advanced, knowing full well that mostly older students will be there. He’s said that it’ll look good when he takes the Healer exams so Jisung hasn’t asked about anything else. Maybe he should show up too? He isn’t sure, but he knows Hyunjin will appreciate his company.

Jisung turns to the other side, swinging his leg over Seungmin’s hips and pulling him closer. Seungmin mumbles something in his sleep, making the elder Slytherin giggle. His eyes snap open and he pulls away as the first thing he sees is Jisung’s grin. “Merlin, you scared me,” he says, returning to his original position, cuddled up to Jisung. He tilts his head back, looking around the room. He rises his eyebrows as he sees Jeongin sprawled on Hyunjin’s bed while the boy himself is sleeping on the carpet with Felix pushing him away.

Jisung has no questions. Jisung prefers not to have any questions. Seungmin apparently thinks the same, for he props on his elbow, grabs one of the pillows thrown all over the floor and throws it at Hyunjin, who jolts awake. “I'm not sleeping!” he yells, making both Slytherin burst into laughter.

“Shut up,” they hear Jeongin mumble as he shifts under the covers. “I wanna sleep.”

“You can’t. We’ve got classes and there’s still a show to be made during breakfast.” Jisung blinks, remembering the events of previous night. Seungmin sends him a knowing look but doesn’t speak up.

“I don’t have classes until ten A.M,” complains Jeongin, whining and covering his face with a blanket. 

“But you gotta see Lee’s face when Sungie completes his dare,” says Felix out of nowhere. They all shift to look at him and find him rubbing sleep away from his eyes. His pastel hair is messy and Jisung feels a strange urge to punch him in the face because he truly is the cutest person he’s seen in the world and Jisung doesn’t know how to deal with it. 

Hyunjin stands up, bones cracking and walks quietly to his bedside table, taking out a large vial of pearl elixir. He grabs one of the glasses on the table and pours the potion right into it. As everyone drinks it and starts their morning routines, Jisung realizes that he is for real about to enter the Great Hall wearing Lee Minho’s sweatshirt. He doesn’t have a plan, even though his friends have tried to come up with something last night. They have told him about flirting but Jisung isn’t quite sure he can flirt at all. He knows he isn’t a coward, though, and he wants to bring his friends down a peg.

He brushes his teeth and combs his hair, heart pounding in his chest, as if there is something to be nervous about. He puts on the sweatshirt, seemingly made of the nicest fabric in the world, and stands in front of the mirror.

“It looks good on you,” Felix says, leaning against the doorframe. The corner of Jisung’s mouth curls up as he goes back to staring at himself in the mirror. “The boys have already gone, they’ll be waiting at your table.”

What is there to lose? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

So Jisung puts on the most confident smile he can muster, and leaves the Hufflepuff common room with Felix. As they walk and get closer to the Great Hall, he can hear the buzz of conversations coming from the dining hall. They stop by the door. Jisung adjusts the sweatshirt, brushing off the invisible dust off his pants, and Felix squeezes his hand.

And then, they march into the Great Hall, Felix giggling as he walks by his side. Jisung hears people talk and he isn’t surprised. Hogwarts’ students love gossips.

He hears Hyunjin laugh and hears ‘Minho, look’ coming from the direction of the Ravenclaw table. Jisung finds Minho with his gaze, the elder boy’s confusion quickly replaced by a smirk. Him and Felix head straight there, even though they can easily get to the Slytherin table in another way.

As Jisung walks by Minho, he smiles widely and says: “What’s up, Lee?”. Minho’s stare follows him until he sits down next to his friends and even then, he doesn’t take his eyes off Jisung.

He does so only when his friend, Renjun, nudges his side with a confused grin. “Boy, what the hell?” he asks, not caring that literally everyone can hear him. Minho just shrugs, sipping on his americano, eyes only once or twice finding a way to stare at Jisung’s back and the hoodie the Slytherin is wearing.

_His_ hoodie.

**▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃**

  
  


Jisung doesn’t take off the hoodie even when professor Choi says it’s confusing when he doesn’t have his house robes on. He takes out of his bag and puts on a Slytherin tie instead and smirks at how Renjun watches him in amusement. He seems to be just as confused as his friend but he knows better than approaching Jisung.

At lunch, Jisung is careful not to drop anything and dirty the hoodie. Minho isn’t there so he doesn’t really put on a show, only chatting with his friends about their first day of school. As he is chewing on his pasta, Bang Chan, the Slytherin Quidditch team captain nudges his side and says: “You didn’t turn your back on your fellow Slytherins, did you, Han?”. 

Jisung smiles widely and winks. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep being your number one supporter.” Chan just chuckles and immediately shifts his attention to the rest of his friends. Jisung doesn’t really know them since they aren’t Slytherins but they seem pretty friendly, smiling at Jisung, clearly interested in the hoodie he is wearing. Is it really that big of a deal?

Jisung is pretty confused about it. 

“Minho’s got potions after this period. You could, you know, accidentally run into him,” says Hyunjin out of nowhere and Jisung rises his eyebrows. His eyes pierce through his Hufflepuff friend, curious. 

He hasn’t really thought about flirting with Minho in a way other than just glancing at him and showing up nearby so that all his attention is focused on him. But that can’t be a bad idea, can it? Even though his dare isn’t that complicated it won’t hurt to have some fun. 

Jisung wants to get the most out of this year, and if that includes flirting with pretty boys, he’s not going to complain.

**▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃**

Minho is confused.

He has never spoken to Jisung before and hasn’t even paid much or any attention to him through his years at school. But seeing him so confident, Minho thinks there’s something interesting about him. He wonders why he’s not even a little angry with him — if someone sneaks into his dormitory and wears his clothes, it should be a problem. But when the Slytherin looks so pretty in his black sweatshirt, what can Minho do? 

When he leaves the Great Hall after breakfast, his friends start fooling around, asking if he has turned the Slytherin over to their side, if he’s finally found something that will take his attention away from Quidditch at least for a moment, whether it’s summer love or if something has sparked between them on the first day of school. 

Minho has no idea what to say, so he just laughs it off every time and prays to Merlin so no one bothers him anymore.

After finishing Potions class, Minho is talking to Changbin, the Gryffindor of his year. After they left the classroom, Changbin’s head snaps to the right and he rises his eyebrows, amused. Interrupting Minho’s speech about the importance of following the instructions in the manual, he elbows him in the side, catching his attention. Minho glares at him and then looks the way Changbin is _very discreetly_ pointing to.

Han Jisung is sitting on the windowsill, staring out the window lost deep in thoughts. When he hears the noise of the students leaving the room, he turns his head towards them. It doesn’t even take him a second to find Minho in the crowd. And then, that charmingly sweet smile is on his face and it makes Minho furrow his brows, suspicious. Changbin chuckles and bids his goodbye, definitely noticing how the entirety of Minho’s attention is now on the Slytherin boy.

Minho takes a few steps forward and comes closer to Jisung, leaning his shoulder on the wall. They are silent for a while, wordlessly agreeing to wait for the students to leave so they can talk in peace.

“Were you waiting for me?” The Ravenclaw quirks an eyebrow. “And you’re still wearing it,” he points to the black hoodie with an eagle on the front. “Flattering.”

Jisung rocks his legs, still sitting on the windowsill. He keeps his mouth shut, head tilted as he stares at Minho.

“What was that in the Great Hall?” Minho asks, amused, hoping his question will finally get an answer.

Jisung humms. “A dare. So, don’t worry, I’m not madly in love with you.” He clicks his tongue, eyes eager to let Minho know how true is what he says. 

The Ravenclaw shifts. “What a pity. I thought that next time you sneak into my dorm at night, I’d find you cuddling me in the morning.” Jisung shakes his head, a sly smile finding its way to his face.

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” He jumps off the windowsill. “I’m not crazy,” he says but Minho feels like he needs to think otherwise. There’s this weird glint in his eyes, pulling him closer and closer, making him dizzy just by looking into them. “My friends are, though.”

Minho chuckles, now standing straight and facing the younger boy. He has his hands in the front pocket of the hoodie and his green tie is hanging loosely from his neck. “I can’t believe they let you wear it instead of an uniform.” Jisung shrugs and smiled widely. “What can I say? I’m just that charming.” 

Minho doesn’t say anything, just fixes his bag on his shoulder and takes a step forward, walking past Jisung. He hears the boy following him; the exorbitantly high soles of his shoes make a characteristic sound and Minho is sure he’ll remember it for a long time.

“You’re gonna have to give it back,” he says when Jisung catches up with him and is walking by his side. He sees the boy plaster a smug grin on his face. He wants to whip it out so badly. Oh, so badly.

“Dunno,” he shrugs. “I actually like it. It’s pretty comfy.”

Minho rolls his eyes. He takes a turn to the left and walks up the stairs, Jisung still trailing next to him. “No shit, it’s supposed to be comfy.” He looks to the side, glaring, when Jisung elbows him in the ribs.

“Okay, Mr know-it-all,” he huffs. Minho turns a deaf ear to his comment. 

As they walk past the Great Hall and up the stairs onto another floor, Minho realizes they are getting close to the transfiguration classroom. He sae Jisung lift his left hand as he checks the time on his watch.

“Merlin,” he sighs and looks up to Minho and smiles so cutely Minho has hard time believing it’s genuine. “If you want your hoodie back, you gonna have to catch me!” he exclaims and before Minho can even register his words, he runs, laughing out loud. He just shakes his head with a smile and decides to ignore him, for now. Walking into the classroom, he looks over his shoulder once again, Jisung nowhere in sight. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung finds himself seated on the grass between Felix and Jeongin even before the Care of Magical Creatures teacher decides to show up. Jeongin, quite bored and definitely dreaming of going back to bed and sleeping through the rest of the day, is plaiting something from the flowers he’s picking from the ground over and over again. Felix is leaning against his shoulder, eyes closed, soaking up the sun. Jisung stares straight ahead, but out of the corner of his eye he watches the rest of the impatient students. Some, like Chaewon, are finishing their lunch, and others are napping soundly in the shaded parts of the grounds.

When Professor Jo finally decides to show up, Jisung is in the process of throwing flowers at his sister, who just shakes her head and gives him a ‘we'll talk later’ look. Jisung wonders if it’s a twin magic, letting them understand each other so well or if it’s just them. Therefore, after an extremely boring lesson, Jisung tells his friends that they can go to the castle without him, and is waiting for Eunji to join him. 

His sister greets him by hitting him on the head with her textbook, and then as if nothing has happened, she joins their hands together. Jisung has trouble understanding her at times. “When were you going to tell me you're snogging Lee Minho in the dark corners of the castle?” 

First of all, that’s hurt. Second of all, Jisung isn’t snogging anyone. He grins, though, and then lets out a fake, exhausted sigh. “Love, if I were to snog Lee Minho, you’d be the first person to know. For that one time you told me you kissed Ryujin during the third year.”

She smacks him in the shoulder and he lets out a giggle. “Hello? I told you that in secret, keep your voice down!” Jisung hushes her and they walk back to the castle in a relative silence, before she says: “I know you guys probably came up with something dumb and you had to mess with Minho but don’t get into trouble. You promised dad you’ll be good.”

He gasps, offended. “I am always a good boy.”

Eunji rises an eyebrow at him, her eyes shining like honey reflecting the light of September afternoon sun. “Keep lying to yourself, baby.”

She squeezes his arm when they reach the castle, letting him know to let go. “I heard Ravenclaw is up first for opening Quidditch match in October,” she says. “But Slytherin won’t be playing against them anytime soon since we won the cup last year.” Jisung frowns as she starts walking away. “I guess you can cheer on your new boyfriend without worries, then.” Eunji shrugs and smirks, then turning on her heel, lilac hair flipping in the air.

She’s annoying, Jisung knows that well. But Jisung also knows the same blood runs in their veins and somehow the thought is assuring. Having someone in his life to support him in everything (or most of the things) is assuring. 

He sighs, fixing the strap of his bag on his shoulder and starts walking up the stairs. When he gets to his Defence class, Felix is beaming at him, a sky blue flower crown on his head. He sits down on his seat next to Hyunjin and turns around to face the rest of his friends. “You look really pretty, Lixie,” he tells him.

Felix pouts, eyes going huge and Jisung realizes he’s really embarrassed. “Everyone keeps saying that. I really should wear these every day,” he says. Jisung agrees with him.

He rests his chin on his hand and glances at Jeongin, who’s sitting next to them with his friend Beomgyu. The Ravenclaw sends a few finger guns their way, making them laugh, and goes back to the conversation he is having with the Gryffindor.

Jisung likes it.

He likes the way after the war, every house has just merged with one another. He likes how their respective houses have also been keeping them even closer together, too. But seeing everyone bond like this makes Jisung happy. Maybe he is turning into a fluffball.

Turning back to face the front of the class, he glances at his friends once again, light dazzling through the blue stained glass. He wants to keep them like this forever.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

After the sun has long gone beyond the horizon and the other students have already left the library, Lee Minho is still sitting in his usual seat, books shielding him from prying eyes. His eyes close arbitrarily as he reads the next lines of “ _Magical Drafts and Potions_ ” with his head propped up in his hand, but he isn’t giving up. 

If someone on his team sees him here, they will most likely smack him on the head. But what can he do about it when he has to study? No medical studies will accept him based only on his Quidditch achievements alone. To become a Healer, he needs more than a will. Especially when half of the students he knows have the same plans as him. 

Minho rubs his face with his hand and leans back against the uncomfortable library chair. He closes his eyes only for a moment, but hears a rustling behind him, so he immediately turns around. He comes face to face with Renjun, with his arm resting on the bookshelf, giving him a tired look. 

“Let’s get you to bed, okay?” Minho doesn’t have the strength to argue. Not when it came to Renjun. He isn’t sure how they have become so close over the years but despite the small age difference, they understand each other so well. Renjun is his best friend. 

Minho lets him cast a spell on the books to return them to their specific places. He gets up from his chair and walks along the main aisle of the library with the younger Ravenclaw by his side. 

“They haven’t given us the matches schedule yet but everyone’s saying we’re playing first,” he breaks the silence with his tired whisper as they step into the dark halls. “So I have to study now. I’ll get into training the team in two weeks, so I can’t slack off.”

Renjun just sighs but nods nonetheless, knowing well there’s nothing to change Minho’s mind. “But you can’t overwork yourself either. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for you to balance everything but you’re not alone. Especially not when it comes to Quidditch. You know the team is great, you just have to adjust things so you can win.”

Minho doesn’t say anything. His legs get weaker and wobbly as they climb the stairs but Renjun’s hand on his back makes it bearable and helps him get to the Tower.

“You’re gonna hate me for this but I have to ask, because you stubborn dumbass won’t tell me anything,” Renjun mutters as they step into the common room. It’s empty and even though Minho’s tired, he doesn’t feel like sleeping, so he plops down on the couch and snickers at Renjun’s embarrassed tone. 

Minho is sure he could never hate him but Renjun has this habit of exaggerating. He’s got used to it long ago and he’s taken after it, too.

“What’s going on with you and Han Jisung?” Minho should’ve seen it coming.

“You know him?” he asks instead and Renjun nodded, his eyes glistening in the fire.

“I’ve got most of my classes with him. He’s smart. And really annoying,” he tells him, more in a joking manner than anything else. “Not really surprising you get along, then.” Minho chuckles and if his limbs weren’t hurting like hell, he would smack Renjun on his head. He smiles at the younger boy softly, instead. 

“I’ve talked to him once in my life,” he shrugs and Renjun rises his eyebrows at him. “He just told me his friends are, quote, crazy and made him snuck into my dorm and steal my hoodie. End of the story.”

Renjun surpasses a giggle. “Did he at least give it back to you?” The elder boy shrinks in his seat.

“He didn’t. I don’t really feel like fighting him over it. But…” Renjun stretches out his leg just so he can kick him in the shin from his spot on the couch for dragging out what he wants to say. “But he’s fun. I wanna play along. Not now, though. Now I feel like shit and wanna go to bed.” They both sigh in unison.

“You’re weird as hell,” Renjun mutters, standing up. “I hope he’s gonna drag you away from overworking yourself, though. It can be something good.”

Minho has been long ago assured that all Han Jisung is is something good.

A little while after Renjun leaves to go to his own bed, Minho sits still on the couch and stares into the fire, thinking how much the flames remind him of those that linger in Jisung’s eyes, burning.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The next time Minho sees Jisung, his smile is blinding and there’s nothing more to it — it’s just the purest smile Minho’s ever seen on someone and it weirdly fills his insides with warmth. Jisung walks into the Great Hall in hand with his friend, who’s wearing a flower crown on his head. Minho’s seen that friend quite a few times in the Ravenclaw common room with a lot of various flower crowns and he’s thought that boy looks like a fairy. He has learnt he isn’t the only one. 

They walk to the Ravenclaw table and sit down next to Jeongin—whom Minho has once helped with Potions assignment—not far from where Minho is sitting. Close enough that Minho can hear them despite his concentration on talking to his Quidditch team. “Jilix weekend in two days!” Felix exclaims excitedly.

“I still think we should sneak out to Hogsmeade,” he hears Jeongin say and chuckles in his mind.

“We can go crazy next year. Let’s just eat a good cake and drink some wine. But not too much, ” Felix sighs with a smile. “Some people are still dizzy after the last time.” The boys laugh as he nudges Jisung with his elbow. “Though maybe it’s not wine,” he whispers conspiratorially.

Minho feels his neck getting hot in embarrassment as his thoughts return to the Quidditch match his team has been strategizing. He pushes aside the insistent thought about Felix implying Minho makes Jisung dizzy. He doesn’t even know their conversation has been about him yet it really has felt so. And Minho is used to trusting his gut. Minho trusts his mind. It’s hardly ever wrong.

He shoots one last exasperated glance towards the Slytherin boy and turns back to Wonwoo, who is eagerly telling the rest of the team that recruits from many international teams will be looking for new talent in schools all around the world. “I hope Headmistress Bae invited them here,” Jiwoo said, propping her head with her hand. 

“That’d probably be the only chance for any of us to get somewhere.”

And Minho knows that, so he smiles reassuringly at his team and says: “Guys, we’re the best team in Hogwarts, they’re gonna have to scout us all, so you better prepare to kick everyone’s asses this year,” even though the words make his throat clench as he knows it’s a dream they share yet he can’t be a part of. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

When Seungmin says he’s joined the Hogwarts Chronicle team for extra credit, Jisung is thrilled. Seungmin has always liked journalism and taking pictures and he is truly good at it. Jisung admires him for that.

Seungmin has always said that writing is just a hobby, an extra activity to keep him busy (because Seungmin loves to fill spare minutes with being productive, Jisung can’t understand it), but everyone around knows that he is actually serious about it.

He aims higher than the Daily Prophet, though, practically despising and always sharing his disaprobata about what the newspaper has changed into. He pays a lot of money to get The Wizard’s Voice straight from New York every week.

As soon as he graduates, Jisung is sure that Seungmin will be offered an internship at the newspaper and would be number one among journalists. Unless he wants to pursue thousands of training courses first, which is even more like him.

Seungmin is the type of Virgo that needs everything to be accurate and perfect. Jisung has a part of that in himself, too, but it’s definitely not as nurtured as Seungmin’s zeal, so it germinates more slowly. But Jisung waters it meticulously in hopes that one day he will finally see something in it that would help him identify who he really is. 

Jisung bursts out laughing, amused by his own metaphors. He’s sitting in the common room in one of the more comfortable armchairs, leg swung over the armrest and gaze fixed on the glass ceiling. He doesn’t know what has made him agree to accompanying Seungmin to his _work_ but he figures he doesn’t have much choice. He sighs dramatically, throwing his head back, and the sigh is worthy of the best actor on the Broadway stage.

When Seungmin finally appears beside him and urges Jisung with a hand movement, with that stunning friendly smile on his face, Jisung almost stops feeling tormented at all. Almost, because the vision of an afternoon spent in the stands of a Quidditch stadium assisting Seungmin while he’s taking pictures is like a torture.

Jisung doesn’t understand why anyone would want to put pictures of the training in the chronicle of the school, but he isn’t going to interfere because he was sure he would never pick the book up himself in his life.

It’s also not that Jisung doesn’t like Quidditch. It’s nice to cheer for Slytherin with green smeared cheeks and a crowd of people Jisung likes more than everyone else. Even if he doesn’t appreciate the loud screams and too many people surrounding him and invading his personal space. The games at Hogwarts are full of emotions, lasting for hours and yet most of the people in the stands don’t lose energy and vigor even when the game ends. But the trainings?

Practice is tossing a ball back and forth with no apparent meaning. It’s sitting in the cold, as the players in the air try over and over again to get the perfect hit, the perfect throw and the perfect manoeuvre. It’s boring and confusing and there are plenty things Jisung’d rather be doing on a September afternoon right before his birthday. But Seungmin is still smiling as he grabs his arm, camera safe in a bag slung over his shoulder. And how could Jisung not agree to go with him? Maybe if Jeongin didn’t ditch them and Felix didn’t need urgent help in Potions from Hyunjin, they wouldn’t be going just by themselves.

“It’s okay, Sung-ah. I promise it won’t take long,” Seungmin assures as they leave the school and Jisung notices the sun is soon to be setting over the horizon. 

When they reach the stadium, close enough to see the blue robes fluttering in the wind, Jisung wants to run away back to the dormitory, to his nice bed and a warm mug of coffee, even to his unfinished Herbology essay — anything but the damn Quidditch and The Ravenclaw team captain, who is looking at them with interest. Seungmin leads them his way to politely announce that he will be taking pictures for the school chronicle. Jisung sees that gleam in Lee Minho’s eye, sees his face twist into a playful smirk, and he wants nothing more than to grab the broom he is holding and hit him hard on the head.

But Jisung is a composed person, so with typical for Slytherins boldness, he tilts his head to the side and says: “Now that I’m here, you better do your best, Lee.” Minho, definitely not surprised, chuckles at him and shakes his head. He turns his back on them and follows his team into the air, his sapphire robes gracefully dancing in the wind. Jisung accompanies him with his stare, breaking his gaze away only when Seungmin elbows him in the side.

“Do you two ever stop flirting?” 

Jisung wants to know.

He’s surprised that Seungmin doesn’t kick him off the stands as he trails behind him step by step and irritates with his comments. Jisung wonders when he’ll run out of patience. Seungmin even promised him that he’ll buy him ice cream when they go to Hogsmeade in thanks for spending almost an hour with him in the cold. He’s too nice.

When they finish taking pictures and the bubble gum in Jisung's mouth loses its flavor, the Ravenclaw team lie on the pitch, resting during their break. Jisung has had a lot of time to admire them and he wasn’t going to lie — he wants to run to Chan and tell him their tactics for this season so Slytherin can win over them, too. But he knows Chan would just laugh and pat him on the back, quite trusting his own creativity in coming up with Slytherin’s own game tactics.

Besides, Chan is friends with Minho. Jisung has noticed this when he has been walking to his Herbology class a few days ago, and the two have been sitting on a bench in the hallway laughing at something, conspiratorially whispering to each other as if sharing the world’s greatest secrets.

Jisung has ignored the piercing sensation in his stomach and quickened his pace on the way to the greenhouse, his mind getting messy when trying to come up with a reason why he’s been feeling so strange.

As he and Seungmin are about to leave the field, his friend waves to Minho, signaling that he’s finished taking pictures and that they will be leaving them alone. But Minho is just getting up and before Jisung can register what is going on, the older boy is already there next to him, speaking in a tired voice. “Can I see these pictures later?”

Yet instead of looking at the person who actually has something to do with the photos, his gaze is fixed on Jisung. His eyes are bloodshot but still glisten with a dangerous flame, making Jisung feel a strange flash of heat in his lower abdomen. 

“Sure, just let me know when you’re free,” Seungmin replies, making Minho finally focus on him. He smiles slightly, then rises his hand in a gesture of goodbye and turns around, slowly returning to his team. Jisung stares at his back for a moment, then shakes his head, resigned.

As he walks back to the castle with Seungmin, Jisung sees the other Slytherin glance at him with interest out of the corner of his eye. He decides it’s better to ignore him, pretending to be very absorbed with the magnificent colors of the sky.

Jisung is sure that the flames in Minho’s eyes, piercing through his soul, would burn him one day.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

On Jisung's birthday, he’s awakened with a firm embrace and a pair of bodies on his bed. When he opens his eyes, the first thing he sees is Felix's freckles, still clearly visible after his summer in sunny Australia. The Hufflepuff grins at him with his heavenly smile and says: “Happy birthday, Sungie”.

Hyunjin wraps his arms around his waist from behind and if it were a normal day Jisung would think he’s under _Imperius_ curse, but it was his birthday, and if there is any wish the boys always fulfilled, it’s showing Jisung so much affection that he will be begging for peace of mind.

Jisung enters the Great Hall with his friends and a colorful birthday hat with the words ‘Birthday Boy’ on his head. Jeongin waves at them from the Slytherin table and when they come closer he says: “Look, Jisung, I know how much you love me, so I saved you a seat next to me.” 

It takes Jisung all of him to not smother his favorite boy in the world with kisses. He sits down on the honorable spot and drinks his favorite orange juice. His classmates and other students smile to him and wish him happy birthday what makes Jisung too happy. Just as he’s about to bite into a toast, the owls fly into the Great Hall, startling him. He quickly recognizes two of them as their family’s owls. 

The black one gracefully flies towards him, so he makes room on the table. The owl lowers the package gently and sits on his shoulder to rest. Felix immediately feeds and pets her, and the owl hoots content. “It’s from your dad?” Seungmin asks, always curious about Jisung family’s Muggle packages. He nods. 

“Eve flew to Eunji. Dad has a pretty good timing,” he says. He reaches out to unwrap the gift with a smile. The wrapping paper is colorful, full of rainbows and balloons, and when Jisung opens the box, he sees a note on top. 

‘Happy birthday, Sungie. You're almost grown up, but you will always be my little boy. Spend this day and every single one as best as possible. Love, Dad.’

Jisung puts down the note with glistening eyes. He can’t help but smile—a wide grin spreads across his face. There’s another smaller box inside and Jisung takes it out with a smooth movement. His mouth snaps shut as the opens it. A silver necklace with a snake-shaped pendant arranged in the letter ‘J’ is sparkling as if emitting its own light. Jeongin, staring over his shoulder, gasps. Jisung understands his reaction. 

“Woah, it’s really pretty,” whispers Felix. “Your dad is seriously thoughtful.”

Jisung’s dad is more than that. Jisung’s dad makes sure him and Eunji are safe, gives them love so overwhelming that Jisung could get sick of it but he doesn’t. Because he loves his dad more than anyone else in this world. With everything he does, he wants to pay him back for everything he has sacrificed for them.

Jisung has never admired anyone as hard as his dad.

He’s in the middle of putting the necklace on with Jeongin’s help when another, unfamiliar owl lands on their table, dropping another package in front of Jisung. He eyes it skeptically and ignores his friends’ curious questions, reaching to open the gift. Felix throws some snacks for the owl and pets its head, like he always does. 

When Jisung opens the package, his mouth goes agape and he’s startled as the owl rises up and heads towards the Ravenclaw table, all his friends eyes watching it land safely on Lee Minho’s shoulder. Jisung shoots a confused glance at the older Ravenclaw and his stomach does a flip as he finds him already staring.

“He’s unbelievable,” says Hyunjin from the other side of the table, gaining the attention of everyone but Jisung. He furrows his brows at Minho and points to the package. Minho beams and mouths ‘Happy Birthday’ (or something like this; Jisung isn’t the best lip-reader) and Jisung feels like a fool, because the warm feeling is back and it’s spreading all over him and he wonders if the flames from Minho’s eyes could burn his skin like they do to his mind.

Jisung has no strength to wonder how Minho even figured out it’s his birthday or why does he even think getting Jisung a gift was a good idea, so he turns around and glances at the box, his favorite childhood book neatly placed inside. Closing the box with a thump, his mind goes crazy, all thoughts Lee Minho-shaped. 

Later that day, Felix grabs a blanket from his dorm and Hyunjin goes with Jeongin to the kitchen to get some food. Instead of spending lunchtime in the crowded Great Hall, the boys decide to bathe in the high-set sun and sit down by on of the trees by the lake. 

Jisung has changed earlier into his sister’s gift for him — a white T-Shirt with a text written in a bold red font that said ‘I ♥ Hogwarts’. It’s embarrassing but Jisung doesn’t mind. Especially when he’s given Eunji a cow themed bucket hat (that she is definitely proudly wearing now because his twin is more fashionable than he has ever been and she has accepted the weirdness of Jisung’s gifts long time ago). 

With his head lying comfortably in Felix's lap, Jisung is smiling as the sun softly brushes his face. His friends are talking about something quietly, eating their light lunch in the company of soothing sounds coming from the lake.

Jisung tilts his head to the side, letting Felix's fingers run through his hair. He doesn’t mind spending the rest of his life like this. But his friends fall silent and he doesn’t miss that, so he opens his eyes and rises his eyebrows in confusion. He follows Jeongin's gaze and sighs upon noticing Minho at the shore of the lake, walking slowly with sunglasses on the bridge of his nose as the sun caresses his face with its rays.

He doesn’t even think it through when he stands up, ignoring his friends’ whines and trots towards Minho with ease. He catches up with him and starts walking along beside him, as if they have walked together from the beginning. Minho smirks but Jisung can’t even see his eyes from under the round sunglasses. 

“Hey,” he finally says. Minho nods, hands deep in the pockets of his hoodie. He kicks little stones that stumble on his way and looks up to the sky and breathes in the cool air and Jisung is stunned.

It’s not like he’s not awkward with most people but Minho is not like most people, he notices. It’s weird how Jisung can be outgoing around him and in another second, he feels so restless. 

“What’s up?” Minho asks him. He stops in his tracks and Jisung looks around, his friends long way on the other side of the lake, so far away Jisung can barely make them up. “I believe you’ve got a reason to be here other than a clear will to accompany me in my walk.” He lowers the sunglasses with his hand, eyes finding their way to Jisung’s.

Minho might be soft and make Jisung’s stomach twist with laughter but he can for sure also intimidate him. Like right now, his gaze piercing yet curious, like he’s eager to get to know Jisung whole. But he knows that’s not the case. Because Jisung is Jisung, besides his sometimes crazy nature, there’s nothing to him that could possibly interest Lee Minho.

“How did you know I liked ‘Alice in Wonderland’?” He asks bluntly, arms crossed over his chest.

Minho chuckles, “A birdie told me.” Jisung blinks.

He feels an urge to shove Minho into the cold waters of the lake but instead, he furrows his brows and, confused, asks: “You talked to Eunji?”.

Jisung has had no idea Minho knows his sister, but can he be surprised at all? Everyone knows Minho, so maybe Minho knows everyone.

He continues his walk around the lake.

“I liked this book too,” Minho tells him, walking alongside Jisung relaxed. He’s staring straight ahead, round glasses hiding his eyes again. “This is probably the only Muggle book I know. And I thought it might be a good gift.” 

“There was a dedication inside,” Jisung blurts out, his question sounding more like a statement. Minho nods. “To dearest Minho, may you enjoy the magic in your heart every single day,” he recites. He has run his fingers over this page many times, a strange feeling of calmness filling him up as his fingers have traced the rough old paper.

“It’s from my Grandpa,” Minho says after a while, and when Jisung looks up at his face, it’s bright with a gentle smile. Jisung feels nostalgia creeping up in his bones, the source of the feeling unknown, at least to him. “But now it's yours. If I could, I’d write a dedication for you.”

Jisung quirks an eyebrow when Minho spreads his hands comically and in a dramatic voice says: “To the boy who likes to sneak into my dormitory at night and steal my clothes, so that one day you would have the courage to tell me that you’re madly in love with me.” 

The Slytherin bursts out laughing, with an unfamiliar warmth spreading around in his belly. He nudges Minho, whos’ proud of his performance, and takes a few deep breaths to calm himself down, but a wide, heart-shaped smile can’t seem to leave his face anyway.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

While celebrating Seungmin's birthday during the trip to Hogsmeade, Jisung has never let go of his hand. Seriously, his friends should have already kicked his ass many times for how clingy he is, but Jisung loves them more than anything in this world and feels comfortable with them. How else can he show them eternal gratitude for putting up with him?

Walking through the streets full of students, he feels the cold breeze of September wind on his face, despite the fact that the sun is still shining. Jisung knows it would be another month of school passing by before he knows it and he will have to focus even more on his studies and homework, but as he heads towards the Three Broomsticks, all he wants was a huge glass of butterbeer to warm up his cold hands.

Drinking butterbeer on a chilly afternoon is like being wrapped up in a blanket and having fingers running through your hair at the same time. Jisung loves it.

They get a corner table, and Seungmin, as a birthday boy, goes with Hyunjin to order their drinks. Jisung leans against the back of his chair and looks around the bar. Students of different houses intertwine with ordinary residents spending time in the pub. 

The Three Broomsticks are no longer the most beloved place in Hogsmeade, but only few of the Hogwarts students want to leave the center of the town, so most of them just end up here.

Jeongin and Felix are deep in conversation about some animals that Jisung is hearing about for the first time in his life. As he pays closer attention and listens to their conversation, he’s not even sure if they are talking about animals. Jeongin and Felix are a strange combination together, but they make it work perfectly. 

And Jeongin always reminds Felix how pretty he is and makes him colorful flowers crowns. Felix wears them proudly and always smiles genuinely widely when Jeongin is around. Jisung wondered if it’s because Jeongin’s open-mindedness and creativity make him feel safe like they do with Jisung

It’s strange, really, how in various ways his friends have all created a safe space for Jisung to which he is always glad to come back to. Jisung, like a Slytherin that he is, respects and loves his family first. And thanks to these four boys his family has expanded and he has more people to care about. It’s a great responsibility to take care of teenage boys but makes him smile and keeps him going because there’s nothing in this world that Jisung loves more than showing affection. But as Hyunjin and Seungmin sit down at the table, exasperated sigh leaving the birthday boy’s lips while he slides the most appealing cheesecake slice over to Jisung, he realizes that maybe there is one thing he loved more. 

“Sorry it took so long,” said Seungmin, snapping Jisung out of his thoughts that have quickly taken the form of different kinds of cheesecake.

“Changbin stopped us at his table because he insisted that he had to wish his favorite Slytherin the happiest of happy birthdays,” Hyunjin chuckles, elbowing Seungmin to the side.

“You gave him two tutoring sessions two years ago and he’s still crushing on you. Kim Seungmin, your power… it amazes me.” Felix snorts, high-fiving Hyunjin over the table as they notice the Slytherin in question hide his face in his hands. 

It’s not that there’s something going on between them, but teasing Seungmin is their favorite activity, and they don’t have much chances to show off if the only topic that makes flustered is the Gryffindor's Seeker, Seo Changbin.

“He’s staring at us,” says Jeongin and they all sneakily shift to glance in that direction. Jisung, not sure where to look, struggles for a moment to find the right table in the bar. When he finally succeeds, Changbin is no longer looking in their direction, but Lee Minho's fiery eyes seem to only focus that way. Minho evidently hesitates, but after a moment of inner-battle he raises his hand slightly and waves at them with a timid smile on his lips.

Turns out, Jisung doesn’t need butterbeer to feel warm all over.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

  
  


“I’ll be so lonely,” whines Hyunjin, head tilted to the side. He immediately goes into a pleading mode, Jisung notices, because his gaze is now focused on him, a growing pout on his lips. “Jisung, you like potions,” he says. Jisung wants to shut him up with a spell, have already experienced Hyunjin’s begging. “It looks good on papers, you know that. Please, everyone has something going on but you.”

Hyunjin moves closer to him on the couch and with that stupid grin on his face, Jisung’s sure Hyunjin knows he will give in.

The next morning, he signs up for the extracurricular because Hyunjin is his best friend and Jisung likes potions. He’s not particularly tying his future to them (or to anything, in that matter) but doing some extracurriculars will look good in the future.

Jisung, in reality, actually has no idea what he is supposed to do after school. Everyone around him has a dream they chase or their future planned years ahead but Jisung?

Jisung is just passing classes and doing well in most of them, scoring high grades and making his dad proud. But it isn’t enough — the more time Jisung spends wondering, the less he knows about what he truly wants.

He sighs, walking down the empty hallway. He hasn’t meant to skip Herbology, for real, but his mind feels like a mess and it would be no use to go to class when he knows he won’t be able to focus. With a copy of “ _Tales and Fantasies_ ” in hand, he jumps onto the windowsill, leaning over to the side, resting his head on the wall. 

The remains of the first fall rain remain on the windowpane in the form of streaks and drops, which Jisung watches and traces with his finger until they disappear.

He puts the book on his lap and, staring at the colorful cover, lets his thoughts drift away to the boy who makes everything seem a mess. The castle isn’t that small at all, and they don’t share any classes, so it comes as no surprise that Jisung doesn’t see Minho very often.

Except for times their schedules align and he can shamelessly steal glances at the Ravenclaw from across the Great Hall during lunch or dinner.

Minho is interesting — too smart, too invested in Quidditch, too witty and too pretty. Jisung likes all the interesting — he likes learning and getting to know how things work. But this time it’s different. Jisung hates himself for wanting to be close to Minho, skipping the getting to know each other phase.

This evening, he decides he wants to change something. It’s a spontaneous decision but his life has been nothing less than that, lately. So he visits Eunji’s dorm and begs her for some hair dye. She knows better than to question him and gives him what she’s got left in her trunk. 

It’s a ginger hair dye but Jisung makes it work. When he looks in the mirror the next morning, he likes what he sees. His hair feels strange when he first touches it but with everyone complimenting him over the day, he gets more and more confident. 

“Looking hot, Han!” yells one of the boys standing in the hall as he walks to his Charms classes. Jisung blows them a kiss over his shoulder, Eunji rolling her eyes. 

“I know, honey,” he says with a smirk. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

  
  


Jisung ambles from the Slytherin Common Room to the Potions class for advanced. At lunch, he agreed with Hyunjin to meet up there, and Jisung is sure that Hyunjin has been sitting in the classroom for a long time. Maybe he has even gone to the dungeons right after lunch? Jisung can’t be sure because Hyunjin might be quite unpredictable when he gets excited about something.

Jisung shivers. October weather makes itself felt even through the thick walls of the castle, so Jisung has changed from his uniform into a comfortable sweater and overalls, ready to work and quite enthusiastic about making potions, although isn’t entirely sure what the class is going to be thought like.

The door to the classroom is open, and when he stands in the doorway, he sees the teacher sitting on his desk. He’s smiling, chatting with the students and as he looks in Jisung’s direction, he urges him to come inside.

“Jisung, I’m glad you joined us,” he greets warmly. Jisung sends a hesitant smile his way and, with a little embarrassment, shoves his hands into the pockets of his overalls, his gaze moving around the classroom. Hyunjin is sitting on a table in the place they usually occupy. He breathes a sigh of relief, sitting down beside him and tapping him on the thigh.

“I’m glad you didn’t ditch me,” Hyunjin giggles, chewing on his mint gum. Jisung shrugs. The thought surprisingly hasn’t even crossed his mind.

“You owe me,” he says instead playfully. He shoves his hand into Hyunjin’s bag to find something sweet to snack on and takes out a bag of Caramel Cobwebs from Honeydukes. Before he can even rip it open, professor Pearson scolds him:

“No food in class, Jisung.”

He shifts his gaze towards the teacher and purses his lips into a thin line as he sees Lee Minho standing beside the man with a bag slung over his shoulder. “Of course, professor,” he mutters, throwing the candy back into Hyunjin’s bag.

His friend giggles at him and jumps off the table to sit on a chair like a normal human would do. Professor Pearson is closing the door a few minutes later and it takes Jisung all of him to not look around in search of Lee Minho. He’s had enough, at least for the time being. He likes things clear, what he’s having with Minho is all but.

“Well, welcome to advanced Potions class! I’m very honoured that so many of you decided to sign up and I hope it will be a great opportunity for us all to learn at least a bit of what’s more to the art of potions,” says professor Person with a proud grin and Jisung is sure the man hardly ever has taught students fascinated with potions. It’s quite sad how the teacher considers twenty students ‘so many’ but it makes Jisung even more determined to do well.

He likes when people are proud of him so naturally he is hoping professor Pearson will appreciate Jisung’s interest in Potions, even if it isn’t much. Hyunjin huffs under his breath, probably very annoyed that there are actually people in this world who don’t think potions are the most incredible thing. Hyunjin is dramatic about the things he loves, Jisung has learnt.

“So, every week we will discuss and try to brew some of the potions that are outside the scope of the core curriculum. I would like these activities to be based on group and pair work, so that you can all take an active part in them. Every question, suggestion, doubt — whatever you guys have to say, I want to hear.” His smile is kind, and Jisung thinks he probably has never met a teacher more in love with his profession in his life. He wants to feel this way in the future about what he’ll be doing. “That is why we will be changing partners with each potion or we will brew it together, depending on your willingness and skills. I hope that this way of conducting classes will help you find your strengths and weaknesses in potions and give you an overview of what you would like to focus on more because of your interests or the lack of them.”

Jisung doesn’t like it.

He looks around the classroom and finds himself trembling at the mere thought of talking to these strangers, a few of them older than him. Jisung is confident and maybe even out-going but nonetheless, interacting with people he isn’t at least familiar with makes him feel insecure.

When his eyes land on Minho, he’s furrowing his brows at Jisung but sending him a light smile anyway. The thought of working with Minho doesn’t seem that bad to Jisung. He shifts his gaze towards the other students and as his mind emerges from the haze, he notices that he actually recognizes some of them.

There’s Jeno, the Hufflepuff from his year who’s one of the smartest people Jisung knows and Sihyeon, his sister’s Ravenclaw friend and there’s Yeonjun from Slytherin that has the prettiest cat in the world and Kevin, Anthony, Taehyun and Eunbin and there’s Mina and Sarah and suddenly, Jisung feels at ease.

His mind sometimes tricks him like that into the slight fear of unknown but he knows he isn’t alone with that and his friends have shared that they feel like this too. And out of nowhere, Jisung feels warm inside and he grabs Hyunjin’s hand under the table and shoots him a grin, a confused expression on his friend’s face. Jisung just shakes his head and focuses on the teacher, hoping he doesn’t look like a fool smiling to himself. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

  
  


The next time Jisung sees Minho, his hair is blue. That kind of blue that catches people’s eye, makes you stand out in the crowd. Jisung doesn’t recognize him at first and then it hits him, somewhat making him do a double-take. “Lee is such a dedicated Ravenclaw,” sneers Seungmin, causing the rest of the friends to burst out laughing.

He is right.

The first Quidditch match of the season is fast approaching, so most students disappear from the castle as soon as the opportunity presents itself for them to train. Minho is no exception and his electric blue hair accentuated even more what house he belongs to and what house he is going to lead to victory.

Jisung can't help but look that way again, but Minho is too busy talking to his team to even notice him. Propping his head up in his hand, Jisung takes a sip of orange juice and laughs at Felix's joke, even though he hasn't really paid attention. 

His mind feels strangely hazed as he stands up to get to Arithmancy class on time. He grabs Jeongin’s hand on their way to the classroom and feels a smile crawl onto his face as the sunlight slips through the windowpane, caressing his cheeks with warmth.

Jisung, for once, feels carefree.

He isn’t particularly keen on Quidditch but the first match of the season has the entire school pumped. The morning of the match, the Great Hall is unusually cheerful, everyone chatting and placing their bets on either team. Jeongin joins them at the Hufflepuff table with his cheeks smeared blue.

Seungmin quirks his eyebrows and lazily points a finger at him. “Didn't know you were such a Quidditch fan.”

Jeongin rolls his eyes and sits down on the bench next to Hyunjin, picking up a toast. “Shut up, everyone in the common room is getting their face painted. With Minho as captain for another year, we're pretty sure we’ll win the Cup this year.” Jisung and Seungmin share a doubtful look. 

“You guys are good,” starts Seungmin with a mean smile.

“But Slytherin has won the cup for the past three years since Chan has been made captain. You’ve got little chance.” Jeongin furrows his brows, annoyed. Seungmin and Jisung high-five each other over the table, chuckling.

“Don’t worry, Innie, we’ll still have our fingers crossed for you!” Felix elbows Jisung in the ribs so hard that his blue flower crown slips off his head. Jisung smiles and reaches out to fix it gently, more and more convinced that this accessory would be an indispensable element of Felix’s style now.

“Besides,” Jeongin interrupts his musings, “It’s Minho’s birthday tomorrow and he always buys candies for the entire house both on his birthday and after winning a game. I’m hoping for a double reward this year.”

They burst into giggles, Hyunjin pulling Jeongin closer by his waist. “Let’s go, you greedy gremlin,” he says and stands up, the rest quickly following up. “We gotta get good seats, right?”

They arrive at the stadium just as the players of both teams are disappearing into their changing rooms. They climb the steps to the top of the stands, taking the best possible seats. Jeongin, quite happy, sits down in the middle. Jisung takes the seat near the end of the row. The seats next to him don’t remain empty for long, though, because Bang Chan and his friends take them just before the match starts. 

The elder Slytherin smiles curiously at Jisung and looks at him as if thinking about something but Jisung turns back to his friends.

“I thought you’d be wearing Minho’s sweatshirt,” he hears suddenly.

Jisung slowly shifts his gaze to the older Slytherin and puts on the most adorable smile he could, then replies: “Sorry, I wear it too often, had to wash it, but don't worry, Chan, I’ll definitely wear it to the game with Slytherin.”

Chan bursts out laughing and shakes his head, amused. He knows Jisung is only teasing him because his devotion and love for Slytherin are visible to the naked eye. 

Jisung is the perfect example of a Slytherin. Maybe Chan doesn't talk much to him, but he's not blind. He sees how Jisung teases younger students to keep them from feeling lonely and brings sweets and candies, then _accidentally_ leaves them in the common room to share. He’s friendly, but won’t let anyone walk over him. Chan thinks he might make a good prefect with his ambition. It’s a shame he hasn’t been chosen. 

Jisung looks back at the pitch, watching carefully as the captains of the teams approach each other. They shake each other's hands; Minho smiles to Nayeon and pats her on the shoulder. Jisung sees her lips moving and they both giggle about something but because of the distance, he can’t hear anything. Then, they go back to their teams and professor Avery puts a whistle to her lips and the moment she whistles, all the players shoot up into the air.

Jisung watches their capes curiously. They look like wings waving and floating in the wind.

The beginnings are always the most interesting — everyone is full of strength and vigor, sure of victory. The commentator is heard in the distance, some student whose name Jisung doesn’t remember. The students gathered in the stands are sighing and cheering as one of the teams takes the Quaffle, rushing to victory.

Jisung's eyes find Minho unconsciously, though it’s not difficult given his distinctive blue hair. There is no other reason why Jisung is looking at him. None.

Felix distracts him by tapping his thigh and holding out a packet of caramel candy, “You want some?”. He shrugs and grabs a few. As he’s chewing on them, the bleachers adorned in blue yell again, startling him. He looks up and his mouth goes agape.

Lee Minho is flying all the way around the stadium with a smirk on his face and as he gets to the seat Jisung is sitting in, he winks, staring straight into his eyes. Hyunjin, sitting next to him, bursts out laughing.

Jisung realizes that Minho is all in into their little game.

Jisung loves to tease, to test the waters with his words and actions as if he has nothing to lose. And Minho, apparently, doesn’t mind playing that game, knowing that there are no consequences.

It makes his stomach twist, Jisung notices with confusion. He rolls his eyes and smiles but sends a wave Minho’s way nonetheless. It takes all of his energy not to yell at the Ravenclaw as everytime he throws the quaffle through the rings, he shoots Jisung a smirk and makes sure he notices.

As one of the Gryffindors gets bludger to his leg, the professor orders a break.

Jisung thinks it through, he really does, and then throws the remainder of his candies onto Felix’s lap as he stands up and rushes down the stairs to the lockers where the teams are.

He doesn’t have much time, really and maybe someone is gonna scold him for running through the pitch but he doesn’t really care.

“Hope everyone’s got a shirt on,” he exclaims, entering Ravenclaw’s locker room. There are confused pairs of eyes on him but he waves them off. “Lee Minho, you come with me.”

And he doesn’t look back, but the giggles tell him that Minho is actually following him. When he gets to the spot behind the lockers where nobody should see them, he turns around. His eyes meet Minho, the familiar fire still present. It makes him sick. 

The Ravenclaw runs his fingers through his messy hair and shoots him a curious glance. “What’s up, Hannie? Did you come all the way here to congratulate me? That’s lovely of you.”

Jisung crosses his arms over his chest. He likes playing with Minho, he really does, but it’s weird to hear the nicknames; it’s weird to see Minho staring at him like that with his determined eyes and goofy smile. They weren’t friends but have quickly jumped into their little game, not really setting any rules.

Jisung might like breaking rules but he enjoys more making his own.

“What was that? On the pitch, what did you mean?”

Minho cocks his head to the side, curious. “Wasn’t it you who started this?”

Jisung tries to maintain an unaffected facade but Minho is just there, with his stupid glistering eyes and his blue hair and his smirking face and Jisung just feels like running, even though there is no apparent reason why.

“Don’t you worry, though,” Minho continues. He reaches to his neck and untangles the blue scarf that has shielded him from the piercing wind during the game. Jisung sees the way he shivers but Minho just waves it off and takes a step closer. “Take it,” he says and before Jisung even gets to process what’s happening, his pale hands wrap the Ravenclaw themed scarf around his neck.

Minho’s fingers are cold when they brush over Jisung’s right cheek. He meets the elder’s eyes and looks for something, anything that could tell him that his intentions are malicious, that Minho is not that good of a person that he seems to be. But there’s nothing.

Minho smiles at him and it reminds him too much of the cat they have at home.

Despite the cold, Jisung’s cheeks feel warm and when Minho steps back, the comforting feeling is still there. “We wouldn’t want you to catch a cold before our date,” Minho mutters, as if unsure but the smile lingering on his lips is confident. The air is knocked out of Jisung’s lungs. He tries to suppress a cough.

“A what?” he lets out, eyes wide. He’s sure he never signed up for that. Minho must be joking. He reaches out to grab his wrist but before he has a chance to ask for a clarification, Minho’s name is called from the changing room-tent and he’s jogging off, leaving Jisung behind with the biggest mess in his head.

Jisung scoffs and crosses his arms over his chest again, shaking his head in disbelief. Minho has a lot of nerve, but he had yet to discover that Jisung has too. 

“Happy birthday,” he mutters under his breath, Minho too long gone to hear him.

When he’s back in the stands, neither his friends nor the most annoying Slytherin of the century miss the fact that Jisung is wearing a blue scarf with the Ravenclaw emblem around his neck. As Chan pokes him in the side, Jisung pretends he doesn't feel it at all, acting like ignoring the elder Slytherin will do him any good.

Now, however, he is sure that the scarf performs one very important function — it hides Jisung's flushed cheeks from his nosy friends.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

During the next extracurricular advanced potions class, students are set to make the Dreamless Sleep Potion. Professor Pearson seems to be just as excited as he has been the last time Jisung’s seen him.

He’s assigned to Jeno who smiles at him when Jisung takes the seat. They chat quietly about the potions to get rid of awkwardness when Jisung’s head shoots up, nosy.

“I think Miss Jang’s absence is only one-time, so next week we’ll be alright, continuing to work in pairs,” professor Pearson says to Minho. Jisung can’t help himself from looking that way. He quickly glances over the class — some of the students are already engrossed in conversations over the potion. “I’m sure you would do excellent on your own, Mr. Lee, but as I said last week, I would rather have you work in groups.”

Minho’s mouth opens, probably to protest but no words come out as the teacher turns around and scans the room. His eyes land on Jisung, who wants to turn around to face his desk but professor Pearson then smiles and extends his hand towards him with a smile. “You can join Jeno and Jisung. Is that alright with you, boys?” He doesn’t even wait for their response but Jeno mutters an ‘of course’ anyways. 

Jisung doesn’t want to look that way, mind hazy and preoccupied with thoughts of Minho's increasing amount of clothes in his dormitory. Plus brewing a potion.

If only Jisung stopped himself and hasn’t been staring in that direction, Professor Pearson would probably choose another group for Minho to join. But Jisung always digs holes and creates barricades for himself.

All he wants to do is run down the hall and scream into his pillow because Lee Minho makes him so confused. Since the night he has been given that dare, Jisung’s mind is growing more and more confused each day. And the cause of it all is the elder Ravenclaw, setting his bag on the floor and taking the seat across from Jisung.

Making one potion with one person is difficult, Jisung doesn’t want to imagine what happens when Lee Minho joins them. But as soon as the roles are separated, they work quite smoothly.

Jisung feels his hands tremble and his forehead get wet with sweat from the steam rising from the cauldron. Jeno is humming some tune, carefully reading over the recipe once again. He scoffs and mutters, “Can’t believe we forgot about the Chamomile.” He looks up and smiles. “Sorry, I’ll go get it quickly.”

Minho doesn’t even glance at him, but when Jeno is out of earshot and the rest of the students are too busy with their own potions, Jisung clears his throat. Minho quirks an eyebrow at him but doesn’t stop squeezing the Sopophorous Beans.

“Hey,” Jisung whispers. Minho humms but still doesn’t look at him. Jisung feels irritation growing in his stomach. “I wanted to ask you something.”

The Ravenclaw puts down the knife carefully as if he already knows what it’s about. “Go on.” He tilts his head to the side and Jisung sees him glance towards the direction of the storage room with ingredients but quickly, his eyes are already back at Jisung.

“Were you serious? About the date?” Jisung feels weird. He can’t name the feeling, he can’t even place it, he can’t put it on a specific shelf in his mind. He carefully reaches towards the squeezed ingredient on Minho’s cutting board and places them into the cauldron.

“Do you want me to be serious?”

Jisung’s gaze shifts back to Minho’s face and he scoffs. “It’s annoying when you speak like that,” he says rolling his eyes. Minho chuckles and hands him another Bean. After putting it in the potion, he stirs three times clockwise. “And maybe… maybe I want you to.” Minho then smiles at him softly. 

“By the way, I think your hair looks really pretty on you.” 

That’s all he says because once Jeno’s back with Chamomile, Minho’s focus is back on the potion.

Jisung’s focus never really leaves Minho. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

November brings colorful leaves and rainy mornings, more pumpkin tart on the table in the Great Hall and even colder evenings. He brings another Quidditch game in the first weekend, and Jisung is trying his best not to freeze in the stands while his fellow housemates battle the Hufflepuffs on the pitch.

Felix and Hyunjin are sitting a row lower, their cheeks painted black and yellow, smiling ear to ear, even though they aren’t Quidditch fans at all. Jisung also can’t say that he is a very devoted fan of any sport, but every Slytherin win is his win, so it makes him proud, as if he himself has been flying on a broomstick and scoring points.

Hufflepuff has been really good for a few years now, and seeing how determined the players move through the air, you can’t say say that the Slytherins have taken the lead easily.

The next time the tile is thrown through the Hufflepuff loop, Jisung doesn't have a moment to enjoy it. Out of the corner of his eye, he notices someone pushing through his row, surely to take a seat next to him. Jisung turns to Seungmin to ask to switch seats with him, but before he manages to open his mouth, a voice muffled by happy chattering reaches his ears.

“Hey, is this seat taken?” he recognizes Minho’s voice and turns his head his way so quickly his vision blurs. He blinks to get rid of the dizziness and nods at the Ravenclaw. He shoots Jisung a smile so little that it shouldn’t be considered a smile and sits on the wooden bench right next to him.

He leans forward and rests his head on the palm of his hand, elbow pressed into his thigh. His eyes follow the players in the air but there’s some boredom to it that Jisung can’t really place.

“You’re late,” Jisung can’t help but notice.

Minho turns his head to face him and nods. “I had something to do. And I noticed you before I noticed my friends and I thought it wouldn’t hurt to sit next to you.” Jisung’s eyebrows shoot upwards despite him trying not to seem shocked. He isn’t. He’s just mildly surprised but really shouldn’t be. It’s not that big of a deal, Jisung tells himself. “I wasn’t searching for you na stands, if you’re worried about that,” Minho says.

His hair is messier than usual, sticking out in all different directions and his bottom lip is split. Jisung’s gaze lingers too long on his eyes, looking for that blazing fire but he doesn’t see it. Minho stares at him, curious. 

Out of habit, Jisung shakes his head. “I’m not worried. We’re not really strangers, are we?”

Minho doesn’t reply and a weird feeling that he said something wrong settles in Jisung’s stomach. He turns to the side and the worry disappears because Minho is smiling to himself.

Out of nowhere, Jisung feels smitten. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

  
  


The weather gets even worse in the evening and the only thing keeping Jisung on his feet is the hot chocolate waiting for him in the Great Hall and the Ancient Runes assignment he still has to do. He sits down next to Felix and accepts the toast he’s handed with a sigh.

Despite it being time for dinner, the Great Hall isn’t filled with students like it should and Jisung can only guess everyone’s gone to bed early and feeling under the weather.

He chews on the toast, not really paying attention to the conversation around him. Resting his cheek on his palm, he closes his eyes. It’s really hard not to fall asleep surrounded by whispers and the chilling sound of raindrops crashing on the windows.

“You’re going, Jisung, right?” He snaps out of the haze and looks at Jeongin with confusion written all over his face. “You’re going to the library later, right?” He nods and grabs the mug full of hot chocolate.

It’s nothing compared to the one his dad makes at home but it makes the warmth spread all over his inside, the sugar energizing him a little.

“I’m gonna tag along,” Jeongin mutters, munching on his food.

Jisung furrows his eyebrows. “What for?” He taps his foot against the table leg when a blur of blue is within his vision. He feels awfully embarrassed when he succumbs to the urge and looks, realizing that it isn’t who he thought it to be but just another student with equally bright hair. He shifts his gaze back to his friends, hoping the warmth he feels isn’t showing on his face.

“I’m just gonna grab a few books and leave you, don’t worry,” Jeongin snickers. Jisung fights the urge to throw something at him. Jeongin isn’t as bad as he sometimes appears to be. He’s actually helpful since his mind is too creative for his own good and comes up with solutions that might’ve taken other people too long to think about. He’s also most likely to accompany Jisung in weird situations so Jisung would be a fool if he didn’t appreciate Jeongin enough. He tries to show his best to all of his friends, really, they’re the only people who bear with him on daily basis.

When they finish their light dinner, Jisung feels as if everything is in slow mode. They walk out of the Great Hall and head to the library, pretty content with little students in the halls. The door to the library squeaks as Jisung pushes it and Jeongin sends him an annoyed look. “Not my fault,” he shrugs, whispering.

Jeongin just shakes his head and steps forward. He leaves Jisung by the librarian’s desk and disappears into the Reference Section. Fixing the bag slung over his shoulder, Jisung sighs and starts walking to the farthest section of the library; just in the very corner, hidden by shelves and surrounded by foggy windows. 

Jisung likes it best just because it’s quiet and not many students really come by. He stops mid-step when he notices the messy blue haired boy sitting by the single table. Minho appears to be nose deep in the book he’s studying but when Jisung emerges from behind the shelves, his eyes go wide.

“Hello,” he says. “Fancy seeing you here.”

Jisung snorts. He sets his bag down on the floor and plumps down on the chair opposite the Ravenclaw. “Didn’t know you wear glasses,” he points out.

Minho, as if out of habit, pushes them back on his nose and sends him a faint smile. “Only to study. Most of the students do, I noticed.”

Jisung nods. He runs fingers through his hair and straightens the sheet of paper lying on the table in front of him. “I wear them too,” he says. He sees the Ravenclaw staring at him with his head tilted to the left, curious. “Not as often as I should. But my dad probably shouldn’t know that.” They both chuckle even though Jisung is sure he isn’t that funny to make Minho laugh. “But you look good in yours,” he utters.

Minho’s eyebrows shoot up and Jisung can’t help but think that red-tinted cheeks suit him well. Slight embarrassment flows over him, making him direct his gaze to his blank sheet of paper.

They don’t speak much after that, both busy with what they came to the library for. Jisung doesn’t like his Ancient Runes essay; feels like it barely makes any sense but he’s rewritten the beginning over three times so it will have to do. He tries to steal a quick glance at Minho and he appears to be writing something that doesn’t really look like schoolwork. It’s none of his business, though so he goes back to his own work.

When he looks out of the window again, it’s dark outside. He furrows his brows, clears his throat and then speaks up. “Can you tell me what time it is?” he asks since Minho’s got a watch on his wrist and he’s forgotten to wear his own this morning. 

“Quarter past ten,” he shrugs.

Jisung’s eyes go wide. The curfew. “It’s too late for us to be here.”

“I’ve got Headmistress Bae’s permission to stay in the library as long as I want,” Minho declares. Jisung has never heard of such thing. The Ravenclaw must notice his surprised expression because he adds, “My parents asked her to give me full access to the books ‘cause I have to study more.”

It doesn’t make him feel any less astonished.

‘ _Why?_ ,’ Jisung wants to ask but Minho looks like he doesn’t want to elaborate any further and he’s the last person that Jisung wants to make uncomfortable by prying so he doesn’t. He shrugs, then and focuses on his paper again. He scribbles rows and rows of gibberish for another while and he knows he’s not really getting anywhere with it. Jisung sighs.

It’s tiring to spend so much time on essays and classes when he doesn’t have an idea what to do with his life after graduation. He’s too young to choose what he wants to dedicate his life to. It scares him to the bones.

When Minho closes another book on medical use of some plant Jisung doesn't even know and his own handwriting gets messier than usual, he leans back on his chair and blinks a few times. Minho keeps pushing back the glasses on his nose and it looks like he doesn't even realize he's doing it. He doesn't look tired, even though he’s spent much more time in here than Jisung has and all Jisung wants to do is go to sleep. He must be used to studying so late.

Jisung wonders what's making him work this hard. He supposes it would be much easier to work with some sort of motivation; it’s difficult not to have one besides wanting to be a good son.

Minho stretches his arms over his head. He looks around the little corner they’re in and sighs when his soft eyes land on Jisung.

“How long do you usually stay here?” Jisung asks.

Minho licks over his bottom lip and clears his throat. “Well, until Renjun realizes I’m not sound asleep in my bed and comes here to kick my ass,” he sneers, lips curling up in a light smile.

In the faint light of the library's desk lamps, Minho looks absolutely stunning. Embarrassment fills Jisung inside as this thought crosses his mind and he breaks the eye contact. He hears footsteps on the marble floor and realizes that, well, Minho may have the library pass, but he doesn't. And if he gets caught past curfew, Slytherin will lose points and Jisung can't afford that.

The footsteps get louder but Minho looks unaffected, looking over the rest of the books in the pile next to him.

“You're here again, huh?” he hears before he sees the person behind the voice. When Huang Renjun comes into his sight, Jisung must say the boy is mildly surprised about seeing him there. Awkwardly, Jisung puts his hand up and waves, like a total fool but Renjun just shoots just as awkward smile his way and reaches out to smack Minho on the shoulder.

The elder Ravenclaw sighs at Renjun's expression and mutters, “Okay, okay.” He turns to face Jisung again and smiles at him softly. “I gotta go or he kills me here and now,” he whispers like it’s top tier conspiracy. Jisung is sure he can practically hear Renjun roll his eyes.

“I might as well,” the boy says.

Jisung just nods. “I was about to leave too, I feel like passing out.” A weird thing Jisung can’t really decipher flashes over Minho’s face but Jisung has never been good at reading people. Before he can say anything else, Renjun picks up Minho’s pile of books and waves him goodbye. He then grabs the elder’s hand and drags him out of the library and Jisung is alone. When he gets back to the dorm, Seungmin accuses him of going on night escapades with Minho. He has no strength to disagree. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

It’s not yet dark outside when Jisung comes to the seventh floor. He looks around, confused, not really sure why Minho had him come here. Earlier that afternoon, he has grabbed Jisung's arm in the halls after the Numerology class and asked if he’s free this evening. Jisung has said yes and Minho’s told him to come here. So Jisung has. 

The halls are almost empty at that hour, stretching out and out, Jisung's sure he wouldn't be able to see the end of it if the dimming lights weren't hung over the walls. 

When Jisung arrives at the spot, Minho isn't there yet. He huffs in slight annoyance and leans over the windowsill, looking out on the Black Lake. The glass is cold when he follows the traces of raindrops with his fingers. There's a tingling sensation deep in his stomach that he can't really place. 

He’s not nervous. It’s weird, really; Jisung doesn’t do too well around strangers. And that's what him and Minho are, kind of. 

He turns around as the faint sound of footsteps fills his ears. He looks cautiously in the direction they came from, and is not sure what he’s so afraid of. The footsteps grow louder as the person approaches him and when Jisung finally sees them, he lets out a scoff. 

Minho finally decided to show up, with his messy hair and soft eyes. “Thanks for waiting,” he says. “I was helping the guys with practice and lost track of time.” He shoots Jisung an apologetic smile. 

He gestures for them to walk and they don't make 20 feet and Minho's already tugging on Jisung's sleeve to stop him.

“What are we doing here?” the Slytherin asks. Minho doesn't look like he is capable of beating someone up, but Jisung would be lying if he says he isn't having second thoughts. 

Minho, as if he can hear the mess that are his thoughts, snorts and requests: “Close your eyes.” 

Jisung furrows his brows and says the first thing that comes to his tired mind. “What are you gon' do? Kiss me?”

It's silent.

When Jisung dares to steal a glance at him, Minho is grinning. He should get used to the fact that Minho is not in fact a shy nerd. He shakes his head with apparent amusement.

“Not yet,” he voices. Jisung's breath hitches. “Just close your eyes.”

“You won't run away, right? That would be too embarrassing. Don't run away,” Jisung groans. 

“Are you afraid I would?”

The Slytherin snaps his mouth shut. “Be quiet, I closed them.”

He can hear Minho step back and fights the urge to open his eyes and check what he's doing. The Ravenclaw's shoes stomp on the stone floor right next to Jisung and it's even more confusing. 

“You can look now,” he hears suddenly and if he’s thought opening his eyes would clear things up, he’s wrong.

“I'm pretty sure that door was not on the wall,” he points his finger. Minho chuckles, once again and takes his hand delicately, pulling him closer. 

The enormous door squeak when Minho pushes them; Jisung looks around, afraid they've alarmed the entire castle. The elder boy leads him further into the room. Seems like a certainty that Jisung's eyes are as big as galleons. 

His mind can't comprehend how it's possible. How can a sandy beach with the clearest water in the Universe appear out of nowhere in Hogwarts? 

Jisung turns around to face Minho and finds him already staring. His eyes are like the sun. Flaming hot, burning, blinding. So he looks away for a split second to catch his breath.

“What... what is this place?”

Minho is beaming when Jisung looks back at him. He gestures with his hand and starts walking forward, sand squeaking under his shoes. Jisung has no choice but to follow him, delight at this point permanently written all over his face. 

The sun's rays gently tickle his cheeks, and the cool breeze gives him chills as he catches up with Minho.

“It's the Room of Requirement,” he announces after a moment of slow walking. “Basing on your reaction I can only guess you've never seen it before.”

Thinking back, Jisung finds the name recognizable yet too unfamiliar to dwell on. “I haven't,” he admits. Minho, on the contrary, seems well acquainted with the place.

“I was thinking about our date,” the Ravenclaw shrugs. “And this place crossed my mind. The weather's been awful lately, hasn't it? Don't you miss the sun, Jisung?”

He sees Minho steal a glance at him in the corner of his eye. “We can always go back, but since the door hasn’t showed up yet, I think you don’t really wanna leave.”

“I don’t,” he admits with a smile. “Tell me more about this place. How did you even find it?”

They head forward, walking slowly by the sea. Jisung looks around, curious. He sees waves statically crashing over the cliff in the distance and some birds flying high over their heads. There’s no cloud in the sky, weather seemingly too good to be true, especially in the middle of November.

“I wanted to be alone and the room just showed up when I needed it.” Jisung feels like there’s more to it but he humms in understanding anyways. “After I left, I’ve started searching, tried to find anything there was to know. It’s comforting, kind of. To know that there’s a place you can run away to.”

Jisung turns his head to the side to look at Minho. “Run away from Hogwarts?”

“Even Hogwarts can get too overwhelming, don’t you think?” The Ravenclaw shoots him a soft grin and buries his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie.

Silence falls over them, broken only by the sounds of nature, and Jisung feels more at peace than he ever has. It’s strange, to be here with Minho; in a place he doesn’t know with a person he wants to get to know. 

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to the sea,” Minho admits. “My parents are pretty busy so we don’t really go on vacations.”

“Same. I mean, the sea part. It’s really refreshing.”

Jisung inhales and the air is fresh, clear, sweet. He must look like a fool, smiling to himself, absorbing the peace and quiet he hasn’t had a chance to experience for a while.

“Do you wanna sit down? We can eat something, if you want to. Have you even had dinner?” Before Jisung gets a chance to respond, Minho’s already tugging on his arm, pulling him forward.

They sit down in the shadow of a palm tree. The climate here is weird, Jisung thinks, but since it’s all Minho’s head, it feels alright. Minho hands him a bottle of lemonade and leans back on the trunk. He’s looking at Jisung and, in the heat of the moment, the Slytherin puts his hand over Minho’s and says:

“Thank you for bringing me here.”

Minho shrugs but by the way his eyes light up, Jisung knows his words are appreciated. “It might be a lame date but when we can’t really leave Hogwarts, we don’t have much to choose from.”

A date.

Jisung bites down on his lip and leans his head over Minho’s shoulder. His insides feel warm and maybe it’s just the sunlight but he likes the sensation. “It’s alright. I love it here, really. And I wouldn’t mind just… I don’t know. Even sitting in complete silence with you’d be nice.”

Minho quirks an eyebrow. “Like that one time in the library?” Jisung nods as much as he can with his cheek squished on the Ravenclaw’s shoulder. “So you’re saying it was a date?” His breath hitches.

“Maybe,” he says carefully, slowly. Minho’s body shakes when he starts to giggle. Jisung leans back and looks at him, looks for real, studying attentively the way he his nose scrunches, the way his eyes shut and the way his smile widens and widens and widens. Jisung’s heart erupts in delight because he was the cause of Minho’s smile, and making people happy was high on his priority list.

Minho pulls him back onto his chest after a moment and they lay down on the blanket. He doesn’t like sunbathing, but the sun caressing his legs when the rest of his body is hidden in the shade of the tree and Minho by his side make him not hate this imaginary summer so much. 

He closes his eyes, but not for long, because Minho is muttering, “Can you read to me?”

Jisung opens one eye, hesitant, then notices the book lying on the boy’s belly and wonders how Minho knows he likes fairy tales. How does he know that he likes to read and why does he want Jisung to do that for him?

He sits up, then picks up the book and runs his hand over the cover. 

“‘ _Alice in Wonderland_ ’ is your book. ‘ _The Other Side of the Mirror’_ is mine.” Minho smiles warmly at him as Jisung looks up. 

“Never read it.”

“Well, I’m glad to be here when you read it for the first time.”

Jisung feels the warmth flushing his cheeks and spreading all over his inside as Minho pulls him back. He closes his eyes to calm the nervous beating of his heart that has sped up out of nowhere while simultaneously causing a confusion in his head.

Jisung clears his throat and looks over the first page of “ _The Other Side of the Mirror”_. He glances up at Minho when he starts reading, just to see him in total bliss. With his eyes closed and lips curled up in a slight smile, he seems to be feeling at peace. Jisung breathes out and starts reading.

The Bomulsom Kingdom was prosperous. The King provided his people with support and didn’t allow them to experience poverty or any misfortune. He had no idea, however, that his son and the sole heir to the throne didn’t want to take the crown after him. He didn’t want to bear the responsibility, believing that he won’t be able to match his father’s power. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t see himself as the future king.

During one of his wanderings around the castle, when looking for a quiet place where he could escape to from the constant nagging, he found in the dungeons a locked door with an engraved crescent moon. It looked like no one has used them for a long time and the key was nowhere around. He couldn’t dwell on it, afraid to get caught snooping around, so he left the dungeons. The thoughts filled with the secret door, however, didn’t leave him alone. He didn’t recall anyone ever mentioning it and he couldn’t ask, either, because he wasn’t allowed in the dungeons. 

One day, while he was in his father’s chambers, he noticed that his grandfather in the portrait was wearing a necklace with a crescent key on it. When he asked his father about it, he snapped at him, forbidding from ever asking about the key and ever mentioning it again.

The Prince couldn’t, however, forget about it, the more so because his father's reaction made him more intrigued than before.

That's why he had crept into his father's office that night to search. After the King’s reaction, he has a feeling the key was definitely there. He spent a lot of time there, quietly searching the room, careful not to leave any traces.

He was about to lose all his hope after a long time of looking through the King’s office when he looked at his grandfather's portrait again. An idea popped into his mind. 

The Prince gently moved the picture frame aside and smiled victoriously as he noticed the key stuck with a piece of tape on the inner side. He shoved it into his pocket and left the office in a rush.

He didn't go to the dungeons until a few days later, so as not to rise suspicion. The key fit perfectly in the lock and the door swung open without making a noise. For safety, he closed the door again as soon as he entered.

The whole room was empty, dusty, full of cobwebs and dirt. The only thing that drew his attention was the cloth imposed on something. When he took it off, he sighed seeing the most beautifully sculptured mirror he has ever laid his eyes on. As he touched the surface of the mirror, trying to shake off the dust, he felt a twinge in his stomach.

He closed his eyes as the feeling became unbearable.

When he fluttered them open again, he fell to his knees, confused. He wasn't in the dungeons. He wasn't even in his castle. He looked around and stumbled back when he saw a girl’s eyes staring straight at him. “What's taken you so long to get here, Bertie?” 

Jisung blinks in confusion. “What? Where's the rest? It can’t seriously end like this…” He looks up at Minho just to see him grinning from ear to ear. “What’s this about?”

“It’s about this exact feeling. Anyone can come up with their own ending, that’s why I like it so much.”

Jisung humms. “I kinda hate it,” he says, making Minho laugh. He closes the book, letting out a sigh. “Then what's your ending?”

Minho falls silent for a moment, but Jisung knows he’s just thinking because his fingers are moving, trying to tap a rhythm on the sand.

“I think that he was a normal boy on the other side of the mirror. Maybe it was another universe. Maybe he got stuck there or willingly stayed. If that was the case, I think he'd be happy. He didn't want to be the king, right?” 

Jisung thinks there might be more to the story but he doesn't speak up. Instead, he lets his cheek rest against Minho's shoulder, just for a little while.

It’s way past curfew and way too late when they leave the Room of Requirement. Minho walks Jisung all the way back to the dungeons and teases him about being a coward, because Jisung doesn’t want to get caught walking through the halls at night by a teacher. Jisung lets him, with one single nudge to his ribs because he’s tired and Minho’s voice sounds like the prettiest lullaby.

“Thank you for today,” he whispers when they stop by the entrance to Slytherin’s common room. “I really had the best time.”

Minho tilts his head to the side and stares at him with interest. “So… you’re up for another date?” 

Jisung’s heart shouldn’t skip a beat like it does; he must talk to his dad about it, he thinks. Maybe he should have it checked out with a doctor.

He nods and Minho breaks into a soft grin. “Okay, I’ll get going then,” he mumbles. “Sweet dreams, Hannie. See you.”

He walks back, still facing Jisung as the Slytherin leans back over the cold wall. Jisung thinks Minho should be careful, he might slip and fall and break an arm and Jisung would feel to guilty. But the way Minho’s eyes still linger on him in the dark dungeons until he disappears on the stairs make his cheeks feel warm.

Jisung wants to run away somewhere far. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The next weeks of Jisung’s life are full of cheesecake, cheap muggle wine, Felix’s cuddles and Arithmancy homework. His dad writes him and Eunji a few letters asking how they’re doing and attaches a decent amount of printed non-moving muggle pictures of their cat, Byeol.

When Jisung opens one of these letters next to Minho, the Ravenclaw’s go wide. “Merlin’s beard! What’s this cute little creature?” Jisung looks at him in surprise.

“It’s Byeol. Eunji and I got him for our dad so he isn’t too lonely when we’re at school,” he says with a smile. “They’re pretty good friends, if you asked me.”

He accidentally elbows Minho’s side. The windowsill they’re sitting on is big enough for them to have their own space but they must prefer being squished together.

Jisung notices Minho goes quiet as he holds one of the pictures in his hands delicately, as if he’s scared it will fall apart. He seems to be debating something else in his head and Jisung tries to seem nonchalant as he folds the letter back into the envelope.

“You know, you can ask. I don’t mind,” he says finally and Minho’s eyes are back at him.

“We’re unlocking the family trauma level so quickly?”

It’s not really that much of a trauma but Minho’s wording is funny, so Jisung can’t help but snort. It must ease the Ravenclaw’s worries a little because he actually asks his question, still with a hint of uncertainty if it’s alright.

“You keep mentioning your dad but not your mom. Did she— did she pass away?”

Jisung sees him cringe, so he nudges his side, to ease the tension. Their eyes lock.

“She’s still alive,” the Slytherin says then. “At least, I suppose. She left not long after giving birth to us and we haven’t really heard from her since. I don’t remember her well, either. I mean, I was too little to remember anything, so...”

Minho looks too apologetic and Jisung feels like punching him. Instead, he warns: “Don’t even say you’re sorry or I’ll push you on the floor. I’ve heard too much of it.”

The elder boy sighs but nods anyway. He hands Jisung back the Byeol’s picture and mutters: “Your dad did a really good job raising you two. I’d like to meet him one day. He seems really cool.”

Okay, Jisung _must_ write that in his response letter. His dad will probably end up crying out of happiness because one of Jisung’s friends thinks he’s a cool guy.

Jisung snickers. “You can come over anytime when I’m home, really. And you should meet Byeol, too. You like cats, don’t you?”

“Yeah. My parents wouldn’t allow me to have one, though. So petting other people’s cats at school must be enough.” Jisung nods.

“I miss Byeol a lot too, he’s really cuddly. Definitely would like you.”

Minho cracks a smile and his eyes light up at the weak compliment. Jisung should work on them, really, because seeing this warmth radiating flame in the Ravenclaw’s eyes was too good of a feeling to miss out.

Minho glances at his hand-watch and curses under his breath. He jumps off the windowsill and stands in front of Jisung, looking up. “I gotta go to practice, sorry. But I’ll catch you later, okay? Or tomorrow, maybe. It might end late,” he says.

“Don’t stay out _too_ late, though. If Renjun won’t have your head, I will,” Jisung announces sternly, but his face is delicate.

Minho’s hands are suddenly on his thighs, patting them once and then Minho mutters a “don’t worry” and he’s gone. Jisung’s cheeks feel hot when he presses his cold hands to them.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Seungmin gives him _the look_ when he once again mutters something about hanging out with Minho and leaves the dormitory.

It’s not like they have been going out much, really. Minho has been right when he’s said there isn’t much to do at Hogwarts but Jisung has never really gone on dates before, so he wouldn’t know. But somehow, they still make it work.

When it’s raining (and that happens quite frequently all over November) they either go to the Room of Requirement and lay in front of a fireplace with dimmed lights, stuffing their cheeks with marshmallows until their tongues feel like falling off.

If the weather is nice, Jisung runs through the entire castle to find Minho and they walk all around the Black Lake. They go to library and hang out in between classes, steal sweets from the Kitchen and look through all the pictures of Byeol Jisung’s dad has sent him.

Jisung has to disagree with Seungmin because they don’t spend that much time together.

Minho is busy studying for NEWTs and coming up with new tactics for Quidditch matches and Jisung has much more homework than he would like to, because it seems like every teacher at Hogwarts has simultaneously thought, “Hey, these kids don’t have exams this year, let’s give them so much essays to write their hands will fall off before the Christmas break!”.

He sighs, head throbbing after reading another chapter of “ _Voyages with Vampires”_ for his Defence class. Hyunjin is sitting opposite of him, bravely researching more about the topic. Jeongin, who’s now casting a spell on Felix’s new flower crown to make it everlasting, has finished his paper the same day the teacher asked them to write it; Jisung is kicking himself he hasn’t done the same.

He’s about to go back to reading but a certain Ravenclaw with electric blue hair comes into his view and before he even registers what he’s doing, his hand shoots up to wave. Minho notices him and a soft smile blooms on his face. He starts walking to the table Jisung’s sitting at and greets his friends before he greets Jisung.

“You wanna sit with us?” asks Jeongin. Jisung quirks an eyebrow but doesn’t comment as Minho shrugs and sets down his pile of books.

“You’re gonna read these today?” Seungmin questions.

Jisung is quick to respond with a snicker, “Don’t underestimate him.” The other Slytherin just rises his hands in surrender, accompanied by Felix’s giggles. Minho smiles weakly and opens one of his books. Jisung steals a glance at what he’s reading and is not surprised by the title.

“You’re always reading these books about potions and medicine and things…” he points out quietly, careful not to disturb his friends.

Minho nods. “I’m going to be a Healer.” His face lights up a little when Jisung starts beaming.

“That’s super cool! I mean, you’re definitely going to be a great one. You’re the best at potions.”

Minho’s cheeks are heating up when Jeongin scoffs, “Stop flirting like we aren’t here. Some of us have actually came here to study.”

Jisung hears Hyunjin snort, rolls eyes at his friends and then sticks out his tongue, settling on strangling Jeongin when Minho isn’t right by his side.

“I’ll tell you more later, if you want to,” Minho whispers instead and not waiting for Jisung’s reply, he actually gets to work.

They split at the Great Hall when it’s time for dinner because Minho is called by Changbin and his other friends to join them and Jisung doesn’t want to keep them waiting so he pushes the Ravenclaw towards the Gryffindor’s table.

Before he leaves, he whispers “After dinner, seventh floor” like it’s some top secret. But maybe to them, it is.

When Jisung looks over to where Minho’s been sitting after eating a light dinner, he finds the boy already gone. He sits up, a toast still in hand and his friends send him confused stares. Seungmin looks like he already knows what’s up.

“Keep eating,” he says, “He’s ditching us for his boyfriend.”

“He isn’t my boyfriend,” Jisung just answers. He tries to ignore the “yet” Jeongin yells when he’s leaving and the choir of giggles that follows.

His friends are annoying.

He rolls his eyes and skips happily all the way to the stairs. Jisung knows his way enough to arrive at the seventh floor without falling into trap-steps.

When he turns right around the corner on the seventh floor, he stops in his tracks. Minho is breathing so heavily that he can hear it from where he’s standing and he’s clinging onto the windowsill.

“Min?” Jisung asks hesitantly as he approaches. The Ravenclaw turns his way and his jaw is clenched, brows furrowed. When he notices it’s Jisung who’s calling him, his shoulders drop. “Are you feeling alright?” The Slytherin mentally slaps himself.

He does not seem to be feeling alright.

“Sorry,” he mutters, trying to catch Minho’s gaze. “Do you want to come into the Room and sit down?” 

The doors were already there so Jisung supposes Minho has thought about a cozy place when he came here. He slips his hand into the elder boy’s hesitantly but Minho holds onto him tightly, lacing their fingers together. Jisung pushes the doors open and steps into the room, immediately hit by a wave of warm air. There’s a fireplace and a fluffy carpet.

What catches him by surprise is the bed and a spacious closet. Minho looks around and when Jisung glances at him, he feels like the Ravenclaw might cry any moment but Minho doesn’t. He just leads Jisung to the fireplace and sits down on the carpet, clutching a piece of paper in his other hand.

When Jisung sets himself on the floor as well, back leaning over a sofa, he asks, unsure: “Is this your room?” Minho confirms his suspicions by nodding. Jisung himself wasn't sure where the idea came from, because the room was _empty_ . It certainly didn’t scream _Minho_.

The Slytherin is surprised when Minho hands him the paper. He then moves and lays his head down on Jisung’s lap, closing his eyes. The younger boy’s hand immediately, as if out of reflex, rises to pet Minho’s blue hair. Jisung’s fingers run through it all along as he opens the letter. The handwriting is neat, neater than it really should be.

‘Minho,

We’ve been notified about your latest Divination essay and the grade you’ve received for not turning it in. I thought your father and I have made ourselves clear when we told you that Quidditch isn’t a career path you should take, so don’t neglect your schoolwork for it. It’s your last year at Hogwarts, don’t embarrass us.

Sincerely, Mother.’

Jisung’s eyebrows shoot up. He scoffs and clenches his fists because, _wow!_ , this woman really has the nerve.

He puts the paper down on the floor, pretty sure he will tear it to pieces if he is to have it in his hands for another second.

Minho isn’t looking at him but Jisung’s heart feels like it will jump out of his chest, anyway. He gathers his thoughts for a moment, because cursing out his maybe-soon-to-be-boyfriend might not be the best idea.

His fingers still linger in Minho’s hair, massaging it lightly. “Min-ah,” he whispers, still nervous. “I know her words affected you but, believe me, none of this is true.”

Minho sits up instantly, eyes fierce. “You know what?” he says, snorting, but there is no fun in that. “This is the first letter they’ve sent me since the September. And it doesn’t mention all the good grades I’ve got or the Quidditch win. Merlin, I could be the best student at Hogwarts, win the Quidditch Cup, but if I had one single bad grade, none of this would matter.” Jisung’s heart breaks. He opens his mouth to say something but Minho beats him to it, continuing: “I simply forgot about this one assignment because we had practice all the week. I turned it in right the next day, but for my mother, it’s not enough.”

Jisung will be lying if he says he knows what to tell him. His mind is spinning and he tries to find the right words but he can’t. He’s never been in a situation like this and he can’t help much. He holds onto Minho’s hand instead.

“You’re enough. Your grades really are excellent. And even if they weren’t, that would be okay, too, because grades don’t define you. They never will. They aren’t any assurance that you’ll get a job after school or that you’ll be successful.” He takes a deep breath. “I think your mother is wrong. You could never embarrass them. What she said is embarrassing for her, though. Who does she think she is?”

Minho snorts. With his smile, Jisung’s weak one comes out too. “I am proud of you, Minho. It might not mean much but I—”

“It means the world to me,” the Ravenclaw tells him. And if Jisung’s heart skips a beat at that, he does his best to ignore it. “I’m sorry I ruined the hangout.”

The Slytherin can’t help but smack him on the shoulder for saying such nonsense. In a fit of confidence, he pulls Minho to his chest, wrapping his arms around the boy. “You didn’t ruin anything. It’s better if you let these things out,” Jisung says. Minho leans back to look at him, arms hanging loose around the younger’s neck. His eyes are warm, warmer than they’ve been a few moments before. “Besides, I’m very grateful that you’ve trusted me enough to tell me.” The Ravenclaw gathers him in a tight embrace again.

“In such a short time, you’ve become a part of my life,” he whispers, lips brushing over Jisung’s ear. “I hope you know I’m never letting go of you now, Han Jisung.”

Jisung doesn’t want him to. 

His hand moves to the back of Minho’s head, pulling him even closer. Jisung can feel the elder boy’s heartbeat on his own chest, picking up and slowing down, hectic.

“It’s okay, okay,” he mumbles over and over until he can feel Minho relax in his arms. It’s different from what he’s seen of Minho but it’s realer than anything in the world. Jisung feels useless because his words will never fix the mess in the Ravenclaw’s mind, but the tender touch of his hands all over Minho’s back seem to work at the moment. Minho is fierce, maybe confident and witty and definitely one of the most dedicated and smart people Jisung knows. But Minho is also doing his best to satisfy everyone but himself.

Jisung sighs, defeated. He knows he won’t change the Ravenclaw’s mindset over one day but even if it takes months or years, he wants to spend his time doing just that. He wants to see Minho proud of himself.

He breaks his gaze away from the fireplace as an unfamiliar but sweet smell fills his nose. He looks around and quirks an eyebrows when he spots two steaming mugs over on the desk.

“Min-ah? Do you wanna warm up?” he asks quietly and feels Minho shift on his lap. He leans back and there’s the texture of Jisung’s sweater imprinted on his cheek. He snorts and finds himself getting even more giddy as Minho’s face is overflown by confusion.

He looks cute, Jisung admits to himself and his chest feels lighter than ever.

“You’re stupid,” Minho says, rolling his eyes. Then he breaks away completely from Jisung’s arms and stands up. “I’m craving some hot choco. Bet it’s already here.” He closes his eyes and sniffs around.

A gentle smile sprawls on his face as he approaches his desk. He grabs the mugs and hands one of them to Jisung. Then, he sits down on the carpet next to him, their thighs squished together. Jisung takes a few sips of the soft drink and finds himself getting sleepy. He tries to blink it away but Minho humms.

“It’s alright. You can lean on my shoulder.”

So he does.

The last thing he remembers is Minho taking the mug from his hands and laying them both down on the floor. He remembers lying on a cloud, dreams soft and delicate. He remembers flying high over the ground, sapphire moonlight illuminating the dark night. 

When he’s being gently shaken awake the next morning, he desperately wants to go back to that sensation but the quiet voice speaking to him doesn’t go away so he’s forced to open his eyes.

Minho is leaning over him, a smile wandering across his face. His blue hair is messy and eyes are bloodshot, but when Jisung looks at him, at first glance he seems to be feeling slightly better than the night before.

They almost bump their foreheads as Jisung sits up quickly as his misty mind realizes where he’s woken up. “Sorry,” he shrugs, grinning.

“Good morning, sleepyhead. If we leave now, you can actually go change and make it to your morning classes.” Jisung groans.

“And what about you?”

“I got first period at eleven,” Minho says and, Jisung is impressed, because he’s actually trying to sound apologetic even though he isn’t. The Slytherin blinks.

“And you’re up just to wake me? Even though you could sleep for, what, two more hours?”

“Listen, you can’t skip classes,” he shrugs and Jisung beams. 

“You’re such a sweet boy, Minho! But really, you should go to your dorm and get some sleep.” It feels strange when he realizes, but Jisung’s hand is already cupping Minho’s cheek so what is he going to do? “You must be really tired, huh?”

“Kinda. But I’ll be fine,” he smiles. “Thank you for staying with me last night. You’re a really cuddly sleeper, though. I think my waist hurts from how you were clinging onto me.”

Jisung’s cheeks immediately feel hot and by the look on Minho’s face, he knows that has been the exact point. He stands up, acting all offended and Minho laughs behind him. He stops in his tracks with his hand on the door handle.

Turning around, he says: “Don’t thank me, though. I’d do it ten thousand times again” and quickly disappears behind the closed doors. As he goes down the stairs, there are more and more students walking through the halls.

When Jisung gets to his dormitory, all his roommates seem to be gone.

“Where were you last night?” a voice scares him. He jumps, clutching his sweater right over his heart. Seungmin is standing in the doorway to the bathroom with a smirk.

“Merlin, Seungmin, maybe don’t give people a heart attack at seven in the morning.”

“Maybe don’t sneak into the dorm so early after spending the night somewhere else.”

He crosses his arms over his chest. “I was not sneaking. You just scared me because I thought no one was here,” Jisung defends himself. He grabs a fresh set of his uniform clothes from the hanger by his bed and goes straight into the bathroom, evading Seungmin. “Minho needed me,” he says before closing the door. It should be enough. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Seungmin keeps teasing him for the entire week and soon the rest of Jisung’s friends join in to make him suffer in misery. It’s not that big of a deal to have a sleepover with your friend in need, he thinks. But with everyone around him poking fun, he starts having doubts.

Looking a few nights back, he doesn’t notice anything out of extraordinary besides the hugs, because that’s a boundary they have crossed without any explanations needed.

Jisung likes being Minho’s friend, likes the studying and their little dates and crashing in the kitchen to get some freshly baked cake. The Ravenclaw’s presence fits just right in his life, as if there has been always a spot made just for him.

The entire group finishes classes around the same time in the early afternoon; they occupy Felix and Hyunjin’s dorm to chill after a particularly tough day. Jisung lies on his stomach, the hood of his sweatshirt covering his head. Thinking about another assignment he needs to write, he huffs. He just wants to buy a one way ticket somewhere far away and never come back. Or at least go back home, to his comfortable bed and old cat. He wants to go back to Falkirk and watch muggle football with his dad and walk around the town centre with Eunji without any reason.

Being a full-time Hogwarts student is even more tiring when you have no idea what career path to take, Jisung notices.

There are a couple of things that Jisung isn’t ready for. The first is graduating. Another is reducing his sugar consumption. And recently Jisung has figured he can add a new one to the list. Asking Minho what is going to happen when he graduates.

Are they still going to be friends? Are they going to see each other? Owl each other?

There are a million questions Jisung wants to ask because… because Minho has grown on him and suddenly, the castle is too big just for him and his group of friends. He knows it’s stupid to think about. It’s just November and they are still getting to know each other but Jisung has this ugly habit of overthinking and it’s tiring.

Jisung feels the urge to hide in his covers for the rest of his life and it’s an idea that seems too impossible to be fulfilled.

It’s when Hyunjin and Seungmin fall asleep and Felix tells him and Jeongin to go get them an early dinner from the kitchens when Jisung sees Minho again. He doesn’t even intend to but it seems like him thinking about the Ravenclaw has the power to summon him.

The elder boy sends him a wave and Jeongin by his side sighs but says “It’s okay, I get it” and tickles the pear on the painting to enter the kitchen. He sends Jisung a teasing look before closing the door. Jisung is sure he will never let him live.

He shakes his head and steps forward. “Hey.”

“You— are you free now?” Minho’s smile is awkward and his eyes are shining in the rays of the setting sun. Jisung shrugs.

“I mean, I’m having a little get together with the boys but half of them is asleep so… technically?”

“Would you wanna go for a walk with me?”

Jisung eyes the kitchen door hesitantly when it opens. Jeongin steps out with his hands full of food and sends him an exasperated sigh. “Just go,” he says and Jisung wonders if he has heard the conversation or has figured it out himself.

“I promise I’ll give him back soon,” Minho swears, beaming. He grabs Jisung’s hand and makes him stumble on his feet. The Slytherin curses under his breath but quickens his pace, following Minho out of the castle.

The sun is just setting, making the November sky sparkle with a thousand colors. It’s chilly outside but it’s bearable — Jisung really prefers the cold to excessive hotness.

As they walk around the castle, there’s nothing but a cozy silence broken by episodic howling and croaking of animals. Jisung shoots Minho a quick glance. “Is there a reason why you wanted me to go with you?” 

“Do we need a reason to see each other?”

They don’t. So Jisung shakes his head, hoping that it’s enough.

Minho's raised eyebrow returns to its natural position as he says: “I kinda fought with Renjun? I don’t know. It’s so dumb.”

“What do you mean by ‘ _kinda_ ’?” Jisung asks. He breaks his gaze away from Minho and settles it on the Black Lake, the depth looking more obscure and terrifying in the dark.

“He just got mad because I stayed in the library again without any reason and I said that he wouldn’t know because he’s got it all handed to him on a platter and I really had no right to say that because it’s not true.” Minho lets out a shaky breath and then scoffs. “Hell, Renjun has been always working so hard and has always taken care of me and I go and say shit like that. I really am an ungrateful asshole.”

Jisung grabs his forearm to stop him in his tracks. “Minho, listen to me, okay? You’re not an asshole. I know that you appreciate Renjun and I’m sure he knows that, too. And I’m also sure — well, not a hundred percent, but you know what I mean — I’m sure that he’s noticed that you’ve been kind of stressed lately.” Minho blinks at him repeatedly. He looks too much like a sad child, and Jisung realizes that he is one.

Minho is still a kid. Minho needs assurance and Minho needs his parents to tell him he did good. Minho needs his friends to support him and Minho needs to have some fun, too. Jisung wants to pull him into an embrace and never let go; he doesn’t.

“I believe that you guys can work it out, you just really have to talk,” he says instead. “Renjun has the right to be upset because of what you’ve said so make sure to give him some time. And he is right, really. I understand where you’re coming from, but it’s really taking its toll on you.”

Minho starts walking forward again, listening to him and lets out a sigh. “It’s hard for me to do anything else than Quidditch and studying and with exams coming up, I really can’t focus on anything else.”

“I understand. I can’t even imagine how hard it must be for you but you really need a break, Minho. There are people worried about you. _I_ am worried about you.”

Minho is silent for a moment and then shudders. He instantly wraps his arms around himself. Jisung notices he is too lightly dressed for this weather. He rolls his eyes and grabs the hem of his sweatshirt, pulling it off. Minho shakes his head at him as he hands the hoodie his way.

“You’re cold.” Minho looks like he wants to argue, so Jisung adds: “Just take it. I’ll be fine. I’ve been living in the dungeons for the past six years.”

Minho snorts and nudges his side after he puts the sweatshirt on. The Slytherin embroidery shows proudly on Minho's chest. Jisung thinks he might quite fit in there.

“Thank you,” he mutters with a smile. “For the sweatshirt and for listening—” Jisung eyes him, confused when he stops talking. Then, the sound of raindrops crashing on the roof of the castle fills his ears and Jisung knows they’re screwed. His hair instantly feels wet and he curses under his breath. “We have to run back,” Minho tells him. 

Jisung tries to make a step forward and whines. The elder boy stares at him with furrowed brows. “I don’t wanna wet my shoes! They’re new!”

Minho giggles at his stupidity. Making him smile is better when the rain isn’t soaking their clothes.

“And what am I supposed to do? Man, it’s not my fault it’s raining!”

“Minho!”

He seems to be internally debating and sighs, defeated. He turns his back to Jisung and exclaims: “Jump!”.

Never in his life has Jisung thought that he would have Lee Minho giving him a piggyback ride in the middle of the rain. Life is unexpectable, afterall.

Minho is athletic, so it’s not really a big deal for him but Jisung is still impressed of how fast he’s walking. And if Jisung clings to Minho too tight, the elder boy doesn’t comment on it. They burst into laughter as soon as they step into the castle and Jisung jumps off Minho’s back.

“What were you guys doing?” they hear out of nowhere and Jisung jumps, scared. Seungmin is eyeing them suspiciously from the stairs to the dungeons. They chuckle again and Seungmin figures he will never be able to understand the way they work.

Jisung turns to Minho with a smile still lingering on his lips. “Please talk to Renjun. And take a shower when you get to the dorms and go straight to bed. No more studying today.” The Ravenclaw grimaces, but as if I can't resist Jisung, he nods hesitantly.

A silence falls onto them and even Seungmin doesn’t dare to interrupt, acting all busy studying the texture of the stone walls of the castle. By the time Minho is figuring out whether to prepare for a handwave or even a hug or something else, Jisung gives him his awkward smile and somehow it still makes him feel warm inside. Minho wants to yell. He turns around and practically sprints through the stairs.

Seungmin snickers.

“He’s really weird,” Jisung mutters.

“Yeah, but you still like him.” Jisung shrugs, as if the thought of liking Minho doesn’t make his chest tight and legs feel like jelly. “Why was he even giving you a piggyback ride?”

“I just didn’t want to wet my shoes. It really isn’t that deep.” Seungmin rises his eyebrows at him, mocking. “You know you could have just cleaned your shoes by magic? You’re a wizard, Jisung.”

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

  
  


As Minho opens his eyes the next morning, he lies in his bed for a moment, looking up at the sapphire canopy above his head. His body feels peaceful — too peaceful — after a pretty hectic evening out with Jisung. A sudden realization pours onto him just the rain the night before and he jumps out of his covers. Checking the time on his alarm clock, he groans.

He runs to the bathroom to brush his teeth quickly and changes into his uniform. Minho shivers just as he’s stepping out of the dorm and curses under his breath. Despite having a hot shower right after arriving the day before, he feels the fever running down his spine. Setting a mental reminder to himself to drink a potion, he grabs the hoodie lying on his bed and leaves the dormitory, already late for his Transfiguration class.

He practically runs from the tower to the third floor, trying to put on the sweatshirt at the same time. Professor Greenaway is already closing the door when he gets close enough to the classroom to exclaim, “Please, wait, professor!”. The teacher sends him a lighthearted smile as he stops next to her, panting. “I overslept. I’m really sorry.”

She nods and Minho doesn’t dwell on it — just comes into the classroom to take his usual seat next to Changbin. He feels other students’ gazes on him as he walks down the aisle but shrugs it off. He knows it’s not common for him to be late but, _hey_ , he has actually made it just in time.

He sighs, taking the book and a notepad out of his bag. He blinks a few times when his vision goes hazy. He really should get some medication after this class.

Out of nowhere, Changbin nudges Minho in the side, making him turn towards the younger boy with a pretentious glare. The Gryffindor nods his way with a smirk and Minho feels even more confused and his the growing headache is not really helping with figuring things out.

“Is sharing clothes your thing now?”

Minho knits his eyebrows in disorientation. Junhui, who’s sitting behind him, must notice his soulless expression because he whispers: “Dude, you’re wearing a Slytherin sweatshirt.”

Minho turns towards him just to see the elder boy’s smug grin. He then stares down at himself and narrows his eyes.

They aren’t lying.

Jisung’s hoodie with a Slytherin crest emblem is right there, comforting his cold, sore body with its warmth.

“Oh” slips past his lips but he turns back to face the front of the class like it’s nothing, Junhui and Changbin erupting into a fit of giggles. Minho tries to focus on Transfiguration but it’s really hard when he feels feverish and the smell of Jisung’s honey scented perfume seems to be even more intoxicating.

He manages to get to the Infirmary on his own right after the class ends, though, refusing Changbin’s assurance that he can go with him.

Professor Kim, who also teaches potions to the first years, gives him a phial of Fever-gone Potion and tells him to eat something good for lunch and he will be alright. He bears through the most tiring classes of Ancient Runes and Potions he has ever had in his life and marches into the Great Hall, feeling much better than in the morning.

His body keeps shivering, though, so he keeps arms wrapped tightly around himself. Jisung’s sweatshirt seems to be doing wonders, at least to him. Minho remembers that the Slytherin still has his Quidditch hoodie and, at this point, it looks like he won’t give it back.

He sighs with a weak smile and reaches forward to grab something to eat. With none of his friends (preferably Renjun) in sight, he settles on a small-talk with a Slytherin from his year, Yeeun, who has figured Minho has been feeling sick because she herself has had a fever a few weeks back. Minho remembers because she has been absent from Advanced Potions and he has worked with Jisung and Jeno, then. She tells him about how her friends have ditched her for lunch and her exaggerations make Minho laugh..

When she finishes her lunch, she sends Minho an apologetic smile and tells him she’s supposed to meet with her girlfriend soon. He shoots his thumbs up to show that he will be fine alone and proceeds drinking his cup of grape juice when she leaves.

He can’t help himself.

His eyes drift towards the Slytherin’s table to find Jisung and he’s taken aback when he finds the boy already staring. His eyebrows are up and he mouths something that Minho’s hazy mind can’t comprehend. Seeing how confused the Ravenclaw is, Jisung bursts into a giggle and points his finger to the entrance of the Great Hall. Minho shrugs but he is already on his feet, supposing he can walk to his next class now.

He meets Jisung in the hallway, the Slytherin’s expression instantly shifting as he notices Minho’s tired face up close. “Don’t tell me you’re sick,” he mutters.

“Then I won’t.” He can’t help but smirk at the younger boy’s annoyed expression and crossed arms. “I’ve already taken a potion. I’m feeling alright.”

Jisung seems to be debating internally for a moment whether to believe him or not as they start walking up the stairs. He looks to the side to stare at Minho playfully without saying anything. Minho thinks he might trip and fall and end up in the Hospital Wing but he keeps his eyes fixed on the sight in front of him. An empty hall.

“You’re wearing my hoodie,” Jisung says finally. Minho spares him an uninterested glance but as he sees the certain glint of amusement and mischief lighting up in the chocolate sweetness of Jisung's eyes, he finds himself getting extremely flustered.

He blames the hotness in his cheeks on the fading fever and hopes Jisung will too. He fixes the strap of the black bag slung over his shoulder and says, boldly: “Yeah, just like you’ve probably been wearing mine when you’re sleeping.”

Jisung has the nerve to giggle at him, showing off his heart-shaped smile. Minho breaks his gaze away. Staring at Jisung always has been and always will be a dangerous game.

Minho might be a coward, after all. With a heart pounding loudly in his chest, he makes a promise to himself. To be a little more brave.

Especially when it comes to Jisung. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

On a particularly warm Sunday morning, Jisung is surprised when he finds Minho sitting at the Slytherin table.

“Care to join me on a walk after you eat?” he asks when the younger boy sits down next to him. Jisung grabs a cup of milk tea and takes a few sips. His tired eyes flicker when he settles them on Minho.

“You know, we’ve gone on a lot of walks,” he points out. The chatter around them is quieter than usual, a lot of students long gone to enjoy one of the last sunny days this year. Minho is munching on a chocolate muffin with a delighted face.

Jisung feels a strange urge he can’t even name but with the last bits of his common sense, he surpasses it down, his throat going dry. He coughs and Minho’s gentle hand is already on his back.

“Are you alright?” Jisung nods, his face feeling hot. He stands up from the bench and shakes the invisible dust off his jeans. “Let’s go.”

After leaving the castle and stepping into the Hogwarts’ courtyard, Jisung's face is immediately illuminated by the pleasant rays of the sun. He closes his eyes and pauses in his tracks to savor the feeling for a moment. Minho chuckles and maybe Jisung is exaggerating, maybe it’s the sunshine already messing with his head but it sounds comforting; it makes a smile creep across his face.

“I’m pretty sure you’ll be able to enjoy the weather where we’re going, too,” Minho says. Jisung blinks a few times but nods and follows Minho across the castle grounds. Around them, students lie on blankets or walk by the lake.

This might be the most peaceful day of the school year, Jisung thinks. It’s soothing, how all people need to enjoy themselves is a little sunshine. He wants to voice it to Minho but as he looks his way, the Forbidden Forest comes into his view.

He opens his mouth in confusion and asks: “Are we going into the forest?”.

“Nothing will attack us, you coward. We’re going to be really close to the castle.”

Jisung scoffs. “I’m not scared but what if someone sees us? We’ll get in trouble!” The Ravenclaw really has the nerve to laugh at him, the younger huffs in annoyance. “You’re supposed to be the responsible one here!”

“I can’t always be a perfect student, Jisung. I need to have fun, too.”

“How is the Forbidden Forest fun?”

Minho elbows him in the side when they approach the border of the woods. He goes in first, looking back over his shoulder to check if Jisung is following him. The path (if it’s even one) is not at all fun to follow. Small branches smack him in the face, even though Minho holds them for him so they won't. Jisung thinks that the trees might just hate him. This is quite likely considering the fact that since he has only set foot in the woods, all he has done is curse Minho and the whole world under his breath.

He hears the boy chuckle and it takes all of Jisung’s strong will to stop himself from kicking the elder in the ass. As they walk further into the woods, the path becomes big enough for them to walk side by side.

It’s much colder in here and Jisung shivers. Minho must think he is just a little coward and mistakes his shuddering for fear because he casually slips his hand into Jisung’s and squeezes it.

The Slytherin’s eyebrows shoot up but the hold feels nice. Too nice for Jisung to break out, too nice for Jisung to say he is not scared at all with Minho by his side.

The thing about holding hands is that it's so casual yet affectionate. It might not even be meaningful but as Jisung's fingers lock with Minho's, it feels like home. All he can think about is the warmth of the Ravenclaw's hand in his that’s heating up his cheeks and his heart as well; he thinks about how how right their fingers feel slotted together, as if two opposites drawn together, captured in a strong pull like two magnets.

Minho pulls him forward, shielding from all the malicious trees and keeping away from the puddles. Jisung sighs, about to ask Minho how much further they have to go but before he can, he thinks that all the suffering caused by the road through the forest is rewarded by the sight that emerges before him from the thicket. 

The clearing, illuminated by the November sun, filled with flowers and plants whose names Jisung would never be able to mention, makes his knees buckle under him.

He clutches Minho’s hand for support and the boy just mutters: “I know.”

Jisung has never even imagined the Forbidden Forest has been hiding something so captivating all this time. All he has been associating with the woods is darkness, danger and dirt, but the magic appearing before his own eyes completely changes this thought. 

Everything looks like out of a muggle postcard. The grass smells as if it has just been mowed, and it takes Jisung a moment to get used to all the scents hitting him from every direction. It feels like a completely different world, more magical than Hogwarts itself.

The flora shouldn’t be this green, this colorful, nothing should be this lively but somehow it is and manages to blow Jisung’s mind. Minho doesn't let him think too long — he pulls him straight into the sea of flowers, making him jump because Jisung adores the nature more than anything and his last wish is to trample any plants.

He laughs out loud, louder than he has in a long time and even though it’s one of the last moments of November, he feels warm all over. The grass tickles his calves as he and the elder boy run across the meadow. After a short while they fall to the ground breathlessly, staring up into the bright blue sky. Minho's arm is found under Jisung's head for comfort, and he is grateful.

Jisung is grateful because Minho keeps showing him beautiful places, more magical than anything he has ever seen. These three months they have spent together hanging out have been the most unforgettable ones of his life and everything — all of it — goes on.

“Thank you,” he voices out, turning on his right side so he can face Minho. “You’re always taking me to wonderful spots I never knew existed. It’s pretty dumb but all these things make me feel really special.”

Minho's gaze is mesmerizing; Jisung wants to breathe a sigh of relief when he sees the familiar flames in his eyes. They are very close to each other. Just enough for the Slytherin to smell Minho’s citrus perfume. Just enough for him to reach out and brush the boy’s blue hair. Just enough to see a small split on his bottom lip. Minho is looking at him, focused.

“You are special, Jisung.” His words seem to echo in the younger’s mind before he truly comprehends them. The feeling in the pit of his tummy is strange, unfamiliar, scary. Words so simple cause a storm in his head and make him so, so confused. “You will always be special to me.”

Jisung feels like he should say something but his throat is dry, mind is spinning, eyes looking for any sign of dishonesty. He doesn’t find any. Jisung doesn’t know how much time passes when they finally get up and he doesn’t really care.

They head towards the castle and Jisung can’t help but wonder how many times Minho has come here, has wandered around the forest to find himself in this meadow for him to know the path so well. As they walk through the clearing, the Ravenclaw’s hair shimmers in the sunshine.

“How come the blue color hasn’t faded yet? You’ve had it for quite a while,” Jisung points out. Minho’s smile — directed solely at him — is somehow warmer than the sun caressing his cheeks. He doesn’t know how long he can handle it.

“It’s enchanted, Jisung,” Minho says, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “I thought your hair was colored by magic, too.” His finger shoots up to point to his fresh ginger locks. As a pureblood, Minho may not be aware of the existence of a Muggle hair dye Jisung realizes.

It's pretty strange to him that — despite all these years — most wizards still stay away from Muggles. Jisung assumes that the Minho's family also does.

He shrugs because the eleven years he has spent with very little magic have had him accustomed to the mundane world. But he is not that little kid anymore and now, he’s building up his life as an adult wizard. All his future plans involve magic because Jisung _is_ magic and it’s not something he wants to ever change.

“By the way,” Minho says, snapping him out of his messy thoughts. “I asked Renjun if we could talk and he said it’s okay if we do it this evening.”

“Merlin, I’m really glad!” Jisung beams at him.

He can see the castle in all its glory right now as they step onto the Hogwarts grounds but no one seems to pay attention to the two students walking out of the Forbidden Forest.

“Hey,” he says when they get to the stone grounds. “This walk was a distraction from you worrying too much, wasn’t it?” Minho gives him a mischievous grin that already gives him the answer. “I feel used,” Jisung mumbles, trying his best to sound hurt.

Minho instantly nudges his side playfully. “Don’t act like you didn’t have fun.”

The cold air in the entrance hall of the castle hits Jisung in the face, cooling down his burning cheeks. Minho raises an eyebrow, probably expecting a confirmation. Jisung sighs in mock annoyance, then turns on his heel and walks away. As he turns around, already standing on the first top steps leading to the dungeons, Minho is still in the same place, staring at him with piercing eyes.

“I always have fun with you,” he says.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung has to assume that the conversation between Minho and Renjun went well when he sees them entering the Great Hall together a few days later. He smiles to himself, relieved and turns back to his friends. 

Then, he does a double take, eyes going wide when the sight settles in his mind. Minho's blue hair is nowhere to be seen, replaced by a vibrant ginger tone. They’re matching. He unconsciously lets out a gasp, attracting the stares of his friends who turn his way.

Jeongin sends him a disappointed look, shaking his head but Jisung knows it’s just an act. “You're so smitten and unaware that it pains me.”

Maybe Jisung is aware of his own smitteness, how can Jeongin know?

He shrugs, though, because lately his mind has been too much of a mess to figure things out. Who says he can’t deal with things later?

He lets out a sigh, propping his head in his hand and shifts his gaze to the stained glass windows in the Great Hall. They seem frosty.

This morning, as he has scrambled out from under the warm covers of his bed, his fingertips have tingled; sort of a cold, piercing feeling that has woken him right away from the morning frenzy.

As soon as he has met up with his friends in the Hogwarts halls, he’s noticed Jeongin grinning from ear to ear, mumbling something about the first snow he has seen from the Ravenclaw Tower.

Jisung can’t really call what lays on the Hogwarts grounds snow — it’s rather a thin layer of fluff that will most likely melt the same afternoon but it is a good sight nonetheless.

Snow means holidays and holidays mean seeing his dad after long, long months. He has been thinking about the presents for his family and group of friends for the entire year, trying to come up something great everyone will enjoy.

He can’t seem to find anything to get Minho, though, because nothing seems right. Minho has become a big part of his life and getting him something that isn’t special or memorable or specifically for him seems like the worst idea in the world. December is already here and he has to come up with something extraordinary very quickly since the Hogsmeade trip is the last chance to buy Minho a present.

“Jisung, we should get going,” says Hyunjin, poking his cheek. He nods and stands up and as he turns to the exit of the Great Hall, his eyes find Minho in the sea of students, as if out of habit.

The (now) ginger is looking at him, too, just like he has been waiting for their stares to meet. He’s smiling.

“You look pretty,” Jisung mouths, pointing to his own hair, hoping Minho understands. Seems like he does when his smile grows, cheeks tinted a color similar to the color of his hair. Jisung notices that Renjun is there next to him, eyebrows quirked, staring at Minho. His expression reminds him a lot of his own friends’.

Jisung sends the two Ravenclaws a small hand wave, Minho mirroring his gesture much more confidently than Renjun. Jisung is glad they have made up.

He walks into his Transmutation class with a smile and continues to do so even when the professor gives them a lot of homework. (Hyunjin looks like he wants to punch him.) 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Despite the approaching holidays, teachers don’t give students not even a second to relax. It seems as if they are giving them even more homework than usual, only saying that it will do them good. (Jisung knows it might be true, but his annoyance apparently knows different and makes him yell internally as professor Jareau gives them an essay to write two weeks before Christmas.)

The only thing keeping him sane with school starting to get decorated in wreaths, mistletoe and tinsels is Minho.

They go to the fake beach in the Room of Requirement a few times to escape the cold walls of the castle just for a moment. Jisung also appreciates and loves the fact that all the house elves adore Minho and give them a lot of hot chocolate and freshly-baked pies whenever they come by.

When Jisung tells him about the Christmas at the Slytherin common room one evening, Minho is surprised.

“Do you also think Slytherins are heartless and evil?” he jokes but Minho’s expression is stern when he looks at him.

“Don’t even think so. You are a perfect example of a warm Slytherin. You might act like a fool sometimes but you’re the least evil person I know.”

Jisung should feel slightly offended but he doesn’t. For the first time, he confidently snuggles into Minho’s side as they lie on the fluffy carpet of a cozy room the Ravenclaw has imagined. His heart feels warmer than ever when Minho puts his arm around his waist to pull him closer, letting Jisung talk more about the Slytherin’s holidays.

He tells Minho about how many Slytherins make sacrifices to stay at Hogwarts with other housemates who can’t go home for holidays, about playing muggle board games in front of the fireplace and getting all the pets together in the common room because they just magically get along. He talks about how they decorate the Christmas tree together, every year choosing a different color. Jisung likes the holidays with Slytherins but he might like Minho’s hand in his hair better.

Minho doesn’t let him fall asleep this time, walking him back to the common room late at night, promising he won’t stay up too late himself.

“We should hang a mistletoe over the entrance,” he hears as he enters the room. It’s lit by a fireplace, so Jisung can clearly see the faces of those facing him. He rolls his eyes at his friends as he comes closer. Seungmin snickers and Jisung just really wants to wipe the grin off his face.

“Yeah, you’d like that to happen. Would you finally get a kiss from Changbin, Minnie? Is that what you want?” He throws himself over the green armchair, legs swinging over the armrest, with the biggest smirk on his face.

Jeongin bursts into laughter but Seungmin doesn’t look so happy. He huffs and his cheeks look pinkish in the light of the fireplace. If his friends can tease him about Minho, he can do that too.

He doesn’t really know what is going on between the older Gryffindor and his friend but it’s not a surprise that Changbin likes Seungmin. He isn’t exactly hiding it. Teasing Seungmin is exceptionally funny since Jisung doesn’t get many chances to do so.

He quickly jogs to their dorm and grabs some sweet jelly beans, offering the whole packet to Seungmin as a sign of peace. The rest of their night is full of giggles, Felix trying to keep them quiet because “everyone is asleep” and mugs full of tea gone cold.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung wakes up in the morning with his back sore and thinks staying up so late and lying in the armchair in a weird position that has seemed comfortable then might have not been the best idea but it’s too late to complain.

A few days ago, with the next Hogsmeade trip around the corner, during one of the lunches Jisung doesn’t really like attending, Eunji has announced he has to reserve the day of the trip for her and he has not dared to disagree.

When he steps into the common room not too long past ten, he finds her sprawled on the couch, reading. She sighs with relief when she sees him and says: “I thought I’d have to go to your disgusting dorm room to get you.”

“It’s not disgusting, you just hate men.”

“Don’t we all?” Jisung will lie if he disagrees so he just ushers his twin to get up and doesn’t say anything.

The halls of the castle are deserted, so all Jisung can do is pray to Merlin that all students are spending time in warm pubs rather than making crowds in the alleys and Hogsmeade stores. He’s hiding his face in the scarf he has wrapped around his neck.

He doesn’t want to get sick right before holidays, he really doesn’t but because — in contrary to his twin sister — his immune system is vulnerable to seasonal colds, he has to take precaution.

When they get to the entrance hall, the door is ajar to make it easier for students to leave the castle. It also causes the piercing chill to burst in, making Jisung shiver. There’s a thin layer of snow spread across the grounds, and even with so little of the white fluff, the landscape looks astonishing.

Eunji links their arms together, snuggling herself closer. He wants to snicker at her for dressing so lightly and now trying to warm up but he doesn't. Instead, he smiles to himself and lets her wrinkle the fabric of his warm coat.

After all, she is his sister and, despite being the most annoying little gremlin, she is also the most important woman in his life.

He snorts at his thoughts as they reach Hogsmeade moments later. Winter always makes him a soft fluff ball, even softer than usual.

Eunji eyes him confused but lets it go. Her eyes are sparling when the snow starts crunching under her feet. Jisung thinks she might start jumping around any moment and pulls her forward into the alleys.

“By the way,” she mutters “How are you and your boyfriend doing?”. Jisung stops in mid-step, throwing a glare her way but she doesn’t pay it no mind. Actually, his gaze only makes her smirk grow larger.

“Minho is not my boyfriend.”

She quirks an eyebrow at him, not really convinced. Jisung can’t help it and rolls his eyes. “But he's the one you thought about when I said boyfriend, huh?”

Her words make his jaw drop. He turns on his heel, breaking his arm out of her grip and strides forward, but doesn't run away from her at all. It's not like it's even possible. Eunji is already running after him, laughing out loud as if he doesn't care at all about the people around them. Jisung’s cheeks are feel warmer than they should , even in this weather, and he prays to Merlin Eunji won’t notice.

“Yah, don’t get all huffy on me! I’m your sister!”

“You’re also pain in the ass but have you ever heard me complain?” She smacks him on his arm with her gloved hand and clicks her tongue.

“It’s okay that you like him, he’s a decent guy,” she precedes to say, as if Jisung does not know. He thinks she might say something else but she’s just holding onto him and staring forward with a smile, silent.

They walk around Hogsmeade aimlessly without encountering any people they know. Jisung hopes not to see Minho. It's not that he doesn't want to, but Eunji might embarrass him by saying some nonsense things. 

They enter one of the stationery stores when Eunji complains she’s running out of supplies due to the sheer amount of homework. Then they look around a music store on the other side of the town, where they end up buying nothing, but the assistant gives them warm caramel candies, so they come out grinning.

Spending time with Eunji has a positive effect on Jisung's well-being, and when they laugh out loud at some dumb stuff displayed in shop windows, his heart feels light.

“Let’s grab something to drink, okay?” Eunji suggests when the clock tower signals noon.

“Can we drop by Tobias’ Wooden Story first? I have to pick something up.”

He tries to ignore the curious look she sends him. “Is that something a present? Specifically, is it a present for a particular Ravenclaw?”

Jisung doesn't answer.

He starts walking forward with a gentle smile wandering across his mouth. Eunji quickly catches up with him and they head towards the store with woodwork.

Jisung has learnt about it from Felix, who had received an ornamented box from Tobias’ shop from his parents when he has left for Hogwarts at eleven years old. It's a small box, but the dark wood carvings, full of flowers and goodies that Jisung was unfamiliar with, are stunning.

He has been thinking about a special gift for Minho these past weeks and when he has been lying in his bed, late at night, it has finally struck him.

“So, what are you getting him?” Eunji asks, pushing a stray hair strand behind her ear. Jisung can see the snowflakes melting on the faded violet locks and he thinks she looks very pretty.

“It’s a secret,” he tells her. “I owled dad a few weeks ago to request it for me and I just have to pick it up now.”

“I’m sure it’s very thoughtful. You always give the best gifts.”

Jisung sends her a grateful smile, then opens the door to the store for her when they reach the shop. There is a boy sitting at the desk, looking not much older than them. As they walk inside, he greets them and asks what he can do to help. Jisung, with nervousness and a pounding heart in his chest, tells him all the information on the order he got from his dad.

“Oh, yeah!” the boy exclaims happily. “Han Jisung, right? Wow, this one is really amazing. My dad was very happy to make it for you.”

Jisung turns to Eunji as the boy disappears in the back room to bring the Slytherin his order. His sister stares curiously at him, as if trying to find out everything about the gift by reading his mind. Good thing she doesn't know legilimency, he thinks.

“You can check if everything’s just as you want.”

“I don’t need to. I trust your dad’s hands.” Jisung beams. He watches the boy pack the gift for Minho into a larger, colorful box, then carefully picks it up from him.

After paying, he and Eunji leave the store, and Jisung keeps the package close to him, not wanting to accidentally break it. Eunji whines about wanting to see it but he’s adamant. He buys her a big piece of cake and hot chocolate when they get to a cozy coffee shop so she doesn’t complain anymore. Jisung gets a big mug of steaming hot tea for himself, making her eye him suspiciously.

“You love hot choco,” she points out. Jisung shrugs. He doesn’t dare to say that hot chocolate reminds him of Minho and he doesn’t even think of taking a sip without him. 

That same night, Jisung and Minho meet in the Room of Requirement, without any purpose or plans. It’s not that uncommon for them to do because friends don’t need a reason to hang out. Jisung likes when they can be this spontaneous, despite loving rules and stability.

When they enter, Jisung sees a room, the walls of which are shelves filled with books with huge armchairs in the middle. He quirks an eyebrow as Minho pushes him towards one of the armchairs and moves away to look around the room in awe.

His eyes sparkle, Jisung can see that even when he’s not close. As the Ravenclaw bestows the volumes with the ghost touch of his fingers, Jisung sits down and swings his legs over the armrest, closing his eyes. Minho’s footsteps get muffled by the carpet but Jisung can hear him getting closer. He sets one of the books on the Slytherin’s tummy, making him flutter his eyes open.

“Read for me,” he asks gently. “I chose a fairy tale. You like them, right?”

Jisung looks at him, tilting his head back and wonders how Minho knows. Maybe he’s good at guessing, or maybe he just knows Jisung well. Maybe he listens to people carefully, or maybe he just makes things up and manages to get them right. Jisung has no idea but the mere thought of Minho paying attention gets his stomach to crunch.

He breathes out, relaxing as Minho sits down on the armchair opposite of him. His lips are curled in a smile, hands resting under his head, copying the way Jisung is sitting. The younger looks over the cover of a seemingly second-handed copy of “ _The Town Above the Clouds_ ” and traces the illustration of the sky.

He has never heard of it before, so, filled with curiosity, he opened the front page and in a calm, low and steady voice began to read the story of the _Great Southern War_ , about how humans have accidentally discovered the existence of fairies and nymphs in tropical forests and, amazed by their skills, have tried to use them for their own purposes and to enslave them.

When the creatures have begun to oppose them, tired of their magic being used for no good, people have tried to kill them; they have cut forests, set them on fire, have done their best to get rid of all the magic that hasn’t obeyed them. Fairies and forest nymphs, furious and wronged, deprived of their home, have called for help from other magical creatures to repay people for the harm done. The war has gone on for years, and it has been clear that humans would never win against magic.

Over the years, fairies and nymphs have built their new home high in the clouds, creating a place safe for their magic, away from humans. However, they have never stopped caring for the nature that has been destroyed by people on Earth. They have tried with all their strength to save the world, and their efforts were not in vain — new generations became more and more aware. The fairies could have slowly sent their magic to the world, to save the flora from destruction.

However, they have never regained full trust in people who would never be able to understand their magic, so to this day they have to hide in their town above the clouds.

Jisung frowns as he closes the book. Shifting his gaze to Minho, he says, “This story is sad. I don't know if fairy tales should be like that.”

“It’s real, though. Don’t you think? The fairies are hardly ever seen but their magic is still visible where it’s needed. They’re just hiding too high up in the clouds for anyone to see.” Minho’s smile is assuring, comforting and Jisung feels too much like a kid, invested with his soul in fairy tales. But he should be able to be invested, moved, touched by magic. He is a wizard himself, how can he not be in love with sorcery?

Minho must like the kid in him because his gaze is warm when he says: “Don’t worry, Hannie. Fairies are alright now.”

Jisung humms in agreement and his lips curl up when he remembers something. “Hyunjin keeps calling Felix a fairy. Maybe he really is one.”

“See? He looks like one, really. Especially with the flower crowns he keeps wearing.”

“Jeongin makes them for him when flowers are blooming,” Jisung says when they both stand up. He doesn’t really want to leave, to walk through the ice-cold and dark halls of the castle. He wants to stay here, with Minho.

“You would look really cute with flower crowns, too.”

“I already look cute,” Jisung declares, huffing. Minho is closing the door behind them, letting the entrance disappear in front of their eyes.

“You do,” the Ravenclaw tells him and it hits him more than it should. He doesn’t say anything, hoping no one hears the screaming mess his thoughts are in the deafening silence of the castle.

It’s not silent when, out of sudden, they hear footsteps. They share terrified looks and before Jisung can even react, Minho is grabbing his hand, locking their fingers and pulling him forward, breaking into a run.

Despite the footsteps and realizing they might be caught wandering around the castle at night, Jisung feels like laughing out loud.

They run down the flight of stairs and across the hall. Minho, as a Quidditch team captain, is fit but the same can’t be said for Jisung, who is running with burning lungs for the first time in a long time. He’s panting as they reach another flight of stares and debates just rolling down like a ball.

Minho shoots him a confused look over the shoulder, as if to ask why is he snorting when they’re running away from a possible detention. Jisung lets go of his hand, slowing down until he’s bending with palms resting on his knees.

“Merlin, just— go,” he breathes heavily. Minho steps closer and rests his warm hand over his back. 

“You’re insane if you think I’m leaving you here,” the Ravenclaw says, voice stern. “Let’s just rest. I haven’t heard anyone since we went down to the fifth floor, anyway.”

Jisung is leaning back on the cold stone wall, chest rising and falling rapidly. He can see the elder boy watching him, probably worried about Jisung passing out in front of him. That’s exactly what Jisung feels like—passing out—and Minho staring at him, making sure he’s still alive, is not exactly helping.

He turns his head away, focusing on the dark hall like there’s something interesting happening in here. Jisung wants to. He doesn't really understand it in himself but he wants to get close to Minho again. Just a brush of their hands, a sharing of warmth as they conspire to get away with their after-hours shenanigans. Minho looks tired when he sneaks a glance at him.

He almost reaches out too, comes an inch closer towards him, but a sudden loud sneeze from around the corner causes both of them to jump in shock, moving further away from each other as they do. They break into a run again but this time, Minho doesn't hold his hand. It's probably the best thing to happen because Jisung has no clue what is going on in his head, and in his heart.

He tries to keep up with Minho but his legs feel like giving out when he jumps down a few steps. He clenches his jaw, feeling irritation throbbing in his head as Minho has to stop once again for Jisung to keep up with him. He doesn't understand his mind when it comes to Minho.

It's as if all his thoughts are puzzles, missing one piece and he can't put them together and make sense of it, no matter how hard he tries. Maybe he likes Minho, maybe he just lacks affection and Minho is always there to give it.

How is he to know this? How is he supposed to tell the difference?

Jisung sighs as they finally reach the entrance hall. They then manage to stop for a moment to rest, and Minho asks again if he's alright. 

“I am,” he mumbles but in reality, he isn't sure.

They start walking into the dungeons then and Jisung realizes that Minho will have to go all the way back to the Ravenclaw Tower and risk being caught past curfew just because he's walking Jisung to the Slytherin common room. His stomach feels like it's doing a double flip.

Derisive laughter erupts in his head and it sounds a lot like Seungmin's. 

“I'm sorry we almost got caught,” Minho tells him when they reach the entrance. Jisung shakes his head and gives him a slight smile because he has a hard time talking while his lungs are still on fire.

“Be careful on your way back,” he manages to grunt out. Minho's gaze is concerned but he nods and slowly begins to walk away towards the stairs without saying anything else. Jisung utters the password to the common room only when the silhouette of the Ravenclaw disappears into the darkness.

**▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃**

A few days before the holidays break, Minho joins Jisung and his friends for dinner. It’s late and the Great Hall is nearly deserted, but Jisung feels more comfortable like this.

The enchanted ceiling this night is more beautiful than ever — the illusion of falling snow against the pitch-dark sky repeatedly attracts his gaze for long moments.

Minho is teasing Seungmin about something when a black owl flies in through one of the open windows. The bird gracefully drops the package next to his plate, finally capturing his attention. Jisung notices Ravenclaw's lips tighten into a straight line and worry makes his gut twist.

“It’s from my parents,” Minho announces quietly, more to Jisung then to anyone else at the table but by his expression, everyone can figure out that the letter is bad news. Seungmin engages the rest in a conversation to give Minho some privacy but Jisung can’t keep his eyes off the Ravenclaw when he takes the parchment out of the envelope. 

‘Minho, 

I’ve been informed you have gotten your Astronomy grade up and I’m really glad. Though, it’s not why I’m writing. Your Father and I have been working on Spattergroit cure for years now and we have made a big progress. We have to fly to the States and meet the scientists of Magical Institute of Health as soon as possible to try out the injections of our potion on suffering patients. We are leaving early in the morning tomorrow. Thus, we won’t be home for Christmas and possibly for the next few months. The two of us have been talking and we think it's best if you don't come home for holidays. Use this additional time at Hogwarts to learn more. 

Sincerely, Mother’

The most disappointing part of the whole situation is that Minho isn't surprised in the slightest. He breaks his gaze away from the sheet of paper on the table and scoffs. His anger gurgles in his veins as he tosses the piece of paper on the table, drawing the eyes of Jisung's friends. The boy himself has been looking at him from the beginning, Minho has felt it.

When their eyes meet, there is no compassion in them. It's strange, but Jisung must have a feeling it's nothing good when it comes to his parents, but he doesn't show the pity Minho fears. Anger makes his brown eyes appear darker, deeper, sharper.

“Is everything okay?” he hears Felix’s voice.

When he turns his way, he sees Hyunjin clasping his hand over the younger boy’s mouth. Minho sighs. 

“No. I mean, maybe my parents won’t make me feel like shit anytime soon but I was waiting to go back home.” Jisung knits his brows.

“Are you saying you’re staying at Hogwarts for holidays?” When the Ravenclaw nods, he huffs in annoyance. “What did they say?”

“They’re onto some magical cure that will probably save the world and they would rather have me away from the house since they basically made it over into their own laboratory.”

“Maybe they just don’t want you to feel alone at home,” Hyunjin suggests.

Minho doesn’t mean to glare at him but he’s angry. He instantly feels bad, though so he sends a softer and apologetic look his way and says: “They’re worried about me breaking something, not me feeling alone.” 

Jisung seems puzzled on the other side of the table but he shouldn’t. “I want to stay with you but I can’t,” he whines. “Dad is excited about me and Eunji coming back so I can’t really get out.”

Somehow, it makes Minho feel warm inside. “Your family is more important than me, Jisung. I won’t be lonely. There’s always someone staying in the castle. And it’s my last year here, I can actually enjoy it.”

Jisung doesn’t seem convinced but he lets it go.

A thought about taking Minho home, to Falkirk, crosses his mind, making a blush spread across his cheeks.

That evening, it takes him longer than usual to part ways with Minho.

“You don’t have to worry about me, Jisung,” Minho tells him, clearly noticing his unusual demeanor. 

“How can I not worry when I care about you so much?” It slips past his lips before he can even think it through. Minho’s lips part in surprise of his honesty. “I mean—! You’re important to me, Minho. And the thought of spending holidays away from your family pisses me off. Even though your parents are awful and I actually hate them,” he mumbles.

Minho takes his cold hand into his own warm one. It sends shivers down Jisung’s spine; it’s electrifying.

“Hannie,” Minho starts softly, eyes flickering in the moonlight flowing through the window. He’s beautiful. He’s absolutely mesmerizing and it strikes Jisung like lightning. His knees feel weak. “I won’t be bored and I certainly won’t be lonely. And, by the way, you can send me letters, if you miss me too much.” 

Minho has the nerve to actually wink at him. He scoffs, ignoring the way his heartbeat picks up.

“You’ll write to me first,” he tries to tease but Minho smiles at him, eyes flickering and says, completely serious. 

“I will.” 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The morning of the departure is hectic.

Students run down the hall with smiles on their faces, glad to finally come home. For Jisung, it's too noisy in the castle, so he takes the opportunity to bravely walk to the Ravenclaw Tower just before leaving, using shortcuts to avoid students.

He has a package in his hands, a box wrapped in colorful ribbons that he has gotten from Felix. His hands aren't trembling as much as he’s feared, but he can't shake that stinging feeling of stress in his stomach. 

What if Minho doesn't like his gift?

Jisung is sure the boy would never tell him so as not to upset him, but it's not that Jisung wouldn’t notice. 

He lets out a sigh. Jeongin is standing in the entryway to the common room, waiting to let him in. They go inside and Jisung is struck with memories of how they have snuck into Minho’s dormitory on the first night of school year because Jisung has wanted to win a dare.

Nothing has changed since then and when he gets to Minho’s room, one of his roommates lets him in and tells him that Minho is taking a shower and he can wait inside. Jisung doesn’t ask how he knows he has come to see Minho, just thanks him and takes the chance to drop the gift on Minho’s nightstand, hoping he won’t notice it.

The Ravenclaw is drying his hair with a towel as he exits the bathroom, and his eyes immediately find Jisung sitting on his bed.

“Good morning,” he says, visibly surprised by Jisung’s presence.

A thought suddenly crosses Jisung’s mind; Minho's fiery hair is quite a match for his flaming eyes.

“Hey. I was thinking… if you maybe would like to walk me to the station? You don’t have to, of course.” 

Minho looks at him like he's talking nonsense, so he gets up from the bed, a little nervous. “I mean, I wanted to go to the dungeons and then walk you but since you’re already here…”

Jisung looks at him and he is well aware that his eyes must now be like saucers. “My luggage is already on the train, so we can go. Very slowly, because I'm in no rush, and if the train accidentally left without me, I wouldn't cry either.”

Minho laughs at him, not realizing how much Jisung likes it when he does. He always laughs at his jokes, even though they lame and most of the time not funny at all. But if Minho is going to laugh every time, Jisung will tell his stupid jokes every day.

He blinks repeatedly, flushing lightly.

Minho puts on a jacket and they leave the dorm.

The Ravenclaw common room is deserted and Jisung’s gut twists when he realizes it might be like that for the rest of the holidays. He tries not to show the worry on his face, though and sends the boy a small smile. 

Courageously, he takes Minho's hand into his own, joining their fingers together. The softness of his palm makes Jisung not want to let go of him. “None of us is wearing gloves and I think we shouldn’t risk catching a cold,” he mutters when he feels Minho stare at him.

He feels like a child, all of sudden because Minho says: “Okay but—just so you know—I wouldn’t mind holding your hand even if that wasn’t the reason.”

Jisung tries to ignore his burning cheeks, Minho's piercing gaze and the fact that they are already approaching the Hogsmeade station. He honestly wants to disregard the whole world.

Most of the students are already on the train — no one wants to stand in the cold, but Jisung doesn't care a tiny bit about the weather when he and Minho stand facing each other at the station and the boy looks at him, warming him up with his burning eyes.

“I’m owling you your Christmas present on the Eve, just so you know,” Minho informs him, breaking the silence.

The snow is crunching underneath his feet even when he isn’t moving, hands in the pockets of his jacket. Jisung hasn’t thought about Minho giving him a present. It has been a given that he will because Jisung just does give presents to people. But the thought of receiving something from Minho is thrilling.

It’s warm and cozy and Jisung adores it.

“I left yours on your nightstand this morning. Just— just don’t open it before the 25th, okay?” Minho nods obediently, grinning at him in silence. They stand like that for a few moments until the snow begins to fall and the frost gets too unbearable.

Minho seems deep in thoughts, though, making him wonder what’s occupying his mind. Jisung sighs as the Hogwarts Express horns. Both him and Minho know what it means but neither of them moves.

Until Minho takes a step forward and draws closer, Jisung's heartbeat picking up, blood thumping in his ears loudly and he's scared Minho will hear. He doesn't hesitate. His lips leave an unfamiliar feeling on his cheek as he kisses him; lips as cold as ice, making Jisung shiver.

When his eyes flutter open, Minho is taking a few steps back, but despite the growing distance, his enveloped in blush cheeks are easy to notice.

“Don’t miss me too much,” he breathes, turning around. Jisung thinks it might be too late for that. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung quickly finds his friends on the train, huddling in himself as soon as he sits in the compartment. They are nice enough to not ask why he is all flushed, but he's sure they must have noticed. 

The journey to London takes pretty long, but after a few heated rounds of Exploding Snap, the train is approaching King's Cross.

Jisung's dad can't go to the magic part of the platform since he is a muggle but it’s not a problem for him because he doesn’t leave the train alone. Eunji is already waiting for him, Seungmin and Felix by his side.

Mr. Han is standing at the very exit between platforms nine and ten, waiting for his children to step out. As soon as they notice him, Eunji immediately runs his way, and Jisung, seeing his dad’s wide smile, already feels at home.

Seungmin and Felix come over to say hi, because Jisung's dad really likes all his friends. Felix’s muggle mom quickly appears in the crowd of other people on King's Cross, so the boy bids his goodbye and promises to owl them but they ‘ _know how long it might take for a letter to arrive from Australia_ ’, and also wishes a happy holiday to Jisung's family.

“He’s a sweet boy,” Mr. Han says and everyone present humms in agreement, because Felix is just _the sweetest_ boy.

Seungmin starts looking around the platform when someone calls his names. “Oh,” he lets out. “It’s my brother. Looks like he’s picking me up today.”

Jisung shrugs and gives his Slytherin friend a quick hug. Seungmin seems to like the idea of backstabbing him better, because he beams and tells him, loud and clear: “I hope you won’t miss your boyfriend too much. Make sure to owl me sometimes, too!”.

Jisung blinks repeatedly as his friend leaves and turns to face his dad, looking mildly confused, and his sister, trying to suppress a laugh.

“What was that about?”

“Nothing. You know Seungmin, he's fluent in gibberish,” he says nonchalantly but it’s hard to pretend when his cheeks feel so warm.

Jisung is starting to believe Seungmin’s only agenda is to make everyone’s life living hell. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Minho has been watching the gift from Jisung and turning it around in his hands many times over the past nights, wondering what might be inside. But he has never looked, not even for a second, not daring to break the promise of not opening the gift until the first day of Christmas.

Waking up on the 25th of December, still in his pajamas and haze before his eyes, he reached out to the nightstand by his bed, delicately taking the colorful box into his hands. He stares at it for a long moment, then unties the ribbons, lifts the lid up and sees a wooden box inside, quite different from the colorful one it has been packed in.

With trembling hands, he takes the wooden casket out and looks at it as well, his lips parting in adoration. It’s carved; stars arranged in beautiful constellations, moon full, grass, flowers, a tree. Everything fits together.

It’s is art that Minho doesn’t feel worthy of, which is why his heart pounds as he debates whether to open the casket. He breathes out, and then lifts the lid just a little, moving his hands away as the box opens all the way by magic.

A soft sound of music fills his ears, and then a figurine emerges from inside the casket. When Minho blinks, the doll flies over the box in circles and then he realizes. 

Minho leans closer, eyes wide open.

The figurine is him, there’s no doubt. Magically flying on a broom, with a blue cloak and his last name on the back. Minho feels his stomach twist and turn, thoughts spinning in his head.

A music box itself is the most beautiful gift he has ever received but a music box personalized for him is much more than that. It's moving, heartwarming, breathtaking. It makes his skin feel hot. It makes his heart tremble. And maybe, it makes him realize he cherishes Jisung even more than he has originally thought. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

“I haven't seen an owl like this before,” says Jisung's dad as he goes down to the kitchen on Christmas morning. The man gestures to a bird with black feathers sitting on the back of a kitchen chair. An “oh” slips past Jisung’s lips.

“It’s from my friend, the one who likes Byeol.”

Byeol, as soon as he hears his name, opens one eye and, noticing Jisung, slowly rises from the couch where he was napping.

“What's up, sleepyhead?” Jisung mutters to the cat, petting him behind the ear.

“Is he _the_ boyfriend?” his dad asks suddenly, probably thinking about what Seungmin has said on the platform a few days ago. Jisung tilts his head to the side but keeps his eyes on his pet, away from his dad. He doesn’t get a chance to answer (which he is definitely not going to complain about) because Eunji is running down the stairs making too much noise for a holiday morning.

“The presents!” she exclaims. “Let’s go open the presents!”

Jisung realizes at this point that Minho's owl is still in his kitchen, and Byeol is looking at it as if he wants to attack. Jisung glares at the cat, then slowly walks over to the bird and carefully holds out his hand to pet it on the head.

When his dad and Eunji are already sitting in the living room and starting to open their presents, Jisung is feeding the black owl with the crisps he has taken out from the cupboard. He coos when the animal starts rubbing its head against his hand.

“You must be really tired, you can rest here. I’m gonna take Byeol with me so he doesn’t eat you.” Chuckling, Jisung picks up the cat from the floor and strokes his fur. He sits down next to Eunji on the floor with the kitten snuggling up in his lap.

“The owl brought this one,” his dad tells him, reaching out his hand to point at the neatly packaged box. Both his sister and dad eye him with the exact same expressions and it looks scary, how alike they are.

He reaches for the box and slowly opens it, first taking out a note on colored paper. He smiles slightly as he reads it, and his grin only widens as he spots a cute, moving ginger cat sticker in the bottom corner of the page.

‘Hannie! You might want to reconsider our friendship as you open this gift, but I hope you won’t. Merry Christmas, give Byeol a kiss from me! (I miss you) (Please give me back my hoodie) (Come back soon)’

So he does as he’s told. He gets confused stares from his family as he grins, leans down and plants a soft peck on the cat’s head but doesn’t pay them any attention. He knows quite what to expect when he reaches into the box and feels the soft material with his fingertips. He pulls out a black sweatshirt, quite similar to the one he has taken from Minho earlier this year, except that when he turns it over, his name is written on the back. He ignores the fact that it’s got the same number as Minho's on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.

If he doesn’t ignore it, his heart will explode in his chest.

Eunji scoffs when she sees the hoodie in his hands, probably remembering the stunt he has pulled on the first day of school. That's not all, because when he reaches to put the box aside, he sees something else inside.

A few books, not too thick, with gilded covers seem to scream for him to take them out. Minho knows that Jisung loves fairy tales, even though he doesn’t really talk about it much, and the fact that he has gifted him with fairy tales in the most beautiful covers ignites his heart. Minho listens to him carefully; he pays attention. This thought is the best gift Jisung has ever received.

His dad whistles when he sees the books and Jisung silently agrees with his reaction.

“ _A Fog of Memories_ ”, “ _Nowhere Wizard_ ”, “ _The Enchanted Stream_ ” and “ _The Lavender Hills_ ” are one of the oldest tales known in the Wizardry World. The golden design is mesmerizing, shimmering in the sunlight. Jisung carefully traces the patterns with his fingers, breathless. The books are old, definitely, but look like new copies and it leads him to think they are charmed.

He can feel the magic exuding, filling him as he holds them in his hands and he wonders if this is what he is supposed to be feeling.

“Whoa, Minho really is crazy,” Eunji mutters. Jisung can’t exactly disagree with that in many aspects.

The first thing that crosses his mind is the fact that these books are like relics, masterpieces, literal rara avis. They must have costed a fortune and Jisung definitely feels like he doesn’t deserve them. He sighs, still in awe.

“I’ve been reading to him a lot when we are hanging out. I didn’t think he would come up with… this.”

“He must really like you, Jisung,” his dad tells him and when he looks up, he sees nothing but sincerity in his eyes.

Jisung hopes it’s true. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

He sends an owl to Minho as soon as his family finishes unpacking the rest of the gifts. He has rewritten it seven times; no words have seem to fit. A “thank you for making my holidays wonderful” has seemed too simple and “my heart has never been this happy” too baring.

He has settled on mentioning how he will definitely make sure to read every single book to Minho when they see each other again and asking whether he has liked the gift Jisung has gotten for him.

Jisung hates the way his hand quavers when he’s signing his name on the piece of paper.

He doesn't have to wait long for an answer. Minho's owl is pecking at the window pane of his room with a letter tied to its leg on the same evening, when Jisung returns to his bedroom after the Christmas dinner.

“Oh no,” he mumbles, letting the bird inside. “How long have you been here, in this cold?”

He strokes its feathers, reaching out his hand full of food, then unties the letter and smiles immediately as he begins to read. 

‘Hannie!!! Your gift is now my most prized possession, I swear. I can’t stop looking at it, I’m so amazed. When Eunji said you are the person to give the best gifts, she wasn’t lying. I did my best trying to find something that you would like so I’m glad you do. I can’t wait to see you very soon. And, don’t worry about me. I’m not too lonely in the castle and I’ve taken a break from studying, too.

Minho

PS. Have you kissed Byeol for me? Please send me a picture!’

His heart beats faster than it should when he finishes reading the note. He imagines Minho staring at the music box with a smile and sparkling eyes. He imagines Minho replaying it over and over and sighs.

Maybe Jisung should finally give some thought to what is really going on between them. Now he is quite convinced that he hasn’t reacted in this way to any letter from his other friends. If Minho is becoming more than that to him, things will get complicated.

He lies down on his bed, eyes fixed on the enchanted starts on his ceiling.

A small secretive thought that Jisung has been keeping locked away in the back of his mind for the past weeks is beginning to resurface and he thinks about how lucky he is to have met someone like Minho who fits him so perfectly. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

January comes faster than expected, bringing along the return to Hogwarts. Jisung says goodbye to his dad once again on the platform (promising he will owl him more often) and enters the train in search of his friends, then spends the journey with them talking about what they have been doing during the winter break.

Hyunjin has stayed home in Seoul for holidays, just like him. Felix has visited his grandparents in Brisbane and generally caught up with his muggle friends. (“It's so weird to see them, every single time! I'm at Hogwarts for 10 months of the year, it's a troment to keep out the magic thing when they're asking what I've been studying at ‘ _my fancy private school in Britain_ ’.”) Jeongin has flown with his family to a tropical island, but Jisung can't really envy him.

The snow-white holidays in Falkirk is what he likes the most in the world and the thought about exchanging them for a week in hot weather doesn't even cross his mind.

Seungmin tells them about how his parents have thrown a party for their pure-blood friends and it has been stiff and boring and Seungmin has felt glad he's just a stupid teenager and has equally stupid teenager friends.

Jisung fakes a sob. “I'm ignoring the stupid part but—wow—it's the most beautiful thing you've ever said to me.” Seungmin proceeds to smack him on the head and stuffs a handful of some muggle candies Felix has brought them into his mouth.

Jisung is quite surprised to see Minho at the Hogsmeade station, face tightly wrapped in a scarf, waiting for _him_. Behind Jisung’s back, Hyunjin and Jeongin are whispering but he can hear them very well.

“20 galleons that he’ll throw himself into Minho’s arms.”

Hyunjin scoffs. “He’s too much of a coward. Bet.”

And Jisung doesn't actually do that, but he isn't quite as much of a coward as they think he is. So he comes up to Minho with a grin and hugs him gently, muttering a quiet “hey”. And it’s enough.

A few days later, when Jisung is writing the last few sentences of his potions essay in the library, Minho surprises him when he shows up with a broom and his Quidditch sweatshirt on.

“Would you like to go somewhere with me?” Jisung agrees and then puts all of his supplies in his bag and drapes it over his shoulder. However, he doesn’t expect (but he should have) that ‘ _somewhere_ ’ is the Quidditch pitch.

“I won’t get on it. No way,” he argues pointing to the broom Minho is leaning on when the Ravenclaw presents him with his _wonderful_ idea. His puppy eyes don't affect Jisung at all (maybe just a little), and he crosses his arms over his chest. “Never in your wildest dreams.”

“Please, there’s going to be a beautiful sunset. I‘d like to watch it with you,” he says.

Jisung looks the broom up and down hesitantly.

For him it’s an unstable machine of destruction, but Minho is the Quidditch captain, flying on a broom at least four times a week, hence he is confident.

“I promise, nothing bad will happen. I won't let you fall. You can hold onto me tight, okay? We won't fly high.”

Minho sees that Jisung is starting to hesitate, so he makes promises. Jisung rolls his eyes, still not quite convinced, but the thought that he’ll be able to shamelessly hug Minho tips the scale. (It’s too embarrassing; if any of his friends find out, they won’t have let him live.)

He sighs, defeated and Minho's face erupts in a smile. It's endearing and Jisung hides his face in the Slytherin scarf wrapped around his neck to hide his traitorous reddened cheeks. Minho helps him get on the broom and shows him the way he should hold on.

Jisung has his arms wrapped all around Minho's waist, fingers of his both hands laced together. As they rise a little in the air, a gasp leaves his mouth. He holds tighter onto Minho, clenching his eyes shut. The air feels colder even though they're not to high up in the air. 

“Jisung, are you alright?”

“I am,” he mutters, cheek pressed into Minho's back. He doesn't feel scared.

He doesn’t. 

“Is it okay if we go higher?”

Jisung nods, but that doesn't mean he's prepared for Minho to accelerate. He lets out a muffled yelp and the Ravenclaw immediately apologizes and offers to go down, but Jisung doesn't want to be a coward anymore. He slowly opens his eyes and inhales sharply.

The sight before his eyes gives him chills. He raises his head, still clinging to Minho, and looks around, trying hard not to look down. Minho turns a little to face him with a stunning smile and— 

Jisung is fifty feet off the ground when he realizes he’s in love with Minho.

Minho is right there, under the setting sun, face colored in pinks and purples and Jisung is holding him in his arms. For a moment, his mind goes blank, thoughts stopping and he's just hanging in the middle of the air with the person he's in love with.

He doesn't pay any mind to the piercingly cold wind, the uncomfortable broom he's sitting on and the uneasiness he has felt a moment ago. He locks eyes with Minho and everything feels different. Jisung closes his eyes, an expression of bliss visible on his face. Things now make a perfect sense that he couldn't have understood before. But that's okay, because Minho is there, smiling at him and showing him another beautiful place.

Jisung likes being in love with Minho.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

They are in the middle of having breakfast together a few days later when Chan practically dashes to the seat next to them. Jisung shoots him a confused glance, but the elder Slytherin seems too excited to even pay him any mind.

“Have you heard? Representatives of the top 5 of the league are coming to Hogwarts for the next few weeks to scout new players!” he whisper-shouts and Jisung assumes it still must be a secret to most of the student body. A smile creeps onto his face and he, too, grows excited.

But Minho's hand holding a mug freezes mid-air, expression blank. He gulps, sets the mug down on the table and turns to Chan.

“That’s super cool. I’m sure they’ll be fighting for you,” he says. Jisung has never heard his voice this soulless.

Chan frowns. “What? No, Minho. I'm telling you because they’ll definitely want you, I just want you to—” 

“I’m not going to play Quidditch.”

Jisung inhales sharply as Minho smiles apologetically and stands up and then walks away. He doesn't care that the first lesson is about to begin, Jisung walks briskly after Minho, leaving a confused Chan behind. 

Minho is already on the stairs when the younger boy gently grabs his wrist to stop him.

“What was that about?” he asks.

The fake smile on his face makes Jisung dizzy.

“Did you forget? My parents said Quidditch is not something they support.”

“Who cares about them? It’s something you love. You should pursue it.”

He cocks his head to the side and exhales, looking away. “Look, not everyone can just choose a profession and work in it, like you can.”

Jisung isn’t hurt. He’s mad because Minho is throwing away a big opportunity. He’s mad because Minho knows he has been struggling with picking something up and decides to make a comment about it. “Your parents are not here to boss you around. If you’re wasting away something that may make you happy just because they’re trying to control you, you’re just a fool. And I’m disappointed.”

Jisung rushes down the stairs, exhaling deeply. He can hear Minho curse under his breath but decides to ignore him, for his own sake and walks away quickly, heading straight to the dungeons. He may pretend he doesn't care about Minho's future all he wants, but that will never be true. He wishes he could do something, anything to convince the Ravenclaw's parents to give him a chance to try something other than following in their footsteps.

Minho is gifted in many fields and alchemy is certainly one of them, but that's not what he wants to devote his life to. He has never said it aloud, but he doesn't have to, because Jisung can see how much more playing Quidditch means to him.

When Jisung leaves the room after the two-hour Potions, he stops in a half-step when he notices Minho leaning against the wall, staring at him. He sends Jisung a weak smile but his face seems tired up close when the Slytherin approaches him.

“I’m sorry for saying that about you,” he says first. “I wasn’t okay because our situations are different. And it was just a crap thing to say. So, I’m sorry.”

“I’m not angry. Maybe just a little but not with you.” Jisung sighs and his lips curl up in a smile.

They start walking through the hall and when their hands brush, Jisung feels an urge to hold Minho close, like all the times he has wanted to, but now he can actually place the feeling.

Love.

“What are you thinking about?” Minho asks him. “You,” he answers and he has never felt this sincere. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Minho seems more tense than usual on the day of the Ravenclaw vs. Hufflepuff game. His team doesn't seem to notice it, but they're not Jisung. So he makes sure Minho eats an actual breakfast and not just drink a cup of tea before flying into the air on his broom.

The strangers on the stands, sitting with headmaster Bae and the rest of the teachers don’t come unnoticed. Their presence causes whispers and all students wonder who they are.

“You know something,” Seungmin asks him but makes it sound like it’s not even a question. Jisung just shrugs, eyes focused on the pitch where the players in blue and yellow uniforms are already standing.

He can easily spot Minho, ginger hair blown by the wind. There’s an uneasy feeling in his gut but he shakes it off. He shouldn’t worry so much. The game is—as always—dynamic and Jisung doesn’t know where to look.

Hufflepuff takes the lead quickly, but the Ravenclaws only get fiercer, hitting with double power. He can't help but glance toward agents of the league's Quidditch teams, who are closely watching the players without saying a word to anyone.

Jisung hopes each of them sees how talented Minho is.

The game goes on for long moments, and Jisung doesn’t want to look away even for a second, scared to miss something. The beaters keep sending the bludgers flying with pings. Despite the distance, Jisung feels anxious, like the ball will fly straight into his face any moment.

Ravenclaw is leading by forty points, but neither player has a happy face. Chaeyoung, their seeker, is flying in circles high above the pitch looking for any trace of the Golden Snitch. She’s tried to trick the Hufflepuff’s seeker into following her to nowhere but after a few times, she no longer succeeds.

Seungmin is saying something but with everyone cheering, he can’t really hear anything so he leans in. A loud yelp cuts through the air and, like it’s magic, everyone goes silent.

Someone is screaming when Jisung turns to the front. It takes him too long to realize who’s falling. His mind is spinning when he notices the ginger hair.

Before he can even register his own movements, he breaks his arm out of Seungmin’s tight hold and sprints down the stands to get to the pitch.

_Minho will be fine. He will be alright._

He’s scared to look up in the air. “I got him!” he hears and his legs give out, just as professor Pearson is levitating Minho down onto the green pitch. He falls down onto his knees next to Minho.

The Ravenclaw’s face, twisted in pain, is terrifying and Jisung is sure it’s what he’ll be seeing in his nightmares.

“His arm is broken, pretty badly,” someone says, voice rushed, resembling professor Kim. “He fainted out of shock, the pain must’ve been terrible.”

Someone is picking him up, keeping him steady as his legs wobble. He doesn’t realize he’s crying until Seungmin is there in front of him, cupping his face, drying his tears with his thumb.

“Jisung,” he addresses him, loudly. Jisung wants to speak, he wants to see Minho, he wants to ask if he’s okay but his throat is sore and he can’t bring himself to voice anything out. The grip on his waist tightens and he turns to the side and sees one of Minho’s teammates. “Jisung,” Seungmin tries again, keeping a grip on his chin so his friend is looking at him. “Jisung, I promise, he’ll be alright. It’s just a broken arm. You have to calm down.” He whimpers.

Seungmin’s expression is worried as he moves his hands to Jisung’s shoulders.

“Hey, buddy, I’m sure you can go see Minho in the Infirmary in a moment, they just need to give him a check up,” the boy keeping him up says and Jisung squints. He nods, the raspy voice strangely calming him down. “Are you gonna be alright?” he directs the question at Seungmin and Jisung sees him nod and then he’s carefully switched into Seungmin’s arms and the stranger is walking away to the rest of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Seungmin is holding him tightly, fingers running through Jisung’s hair.

The Slytherin doesn't realize Jeongin, Felix, and Hyunjin join them until they are all leading him back to the castle. His vision is getting clearer but mind feels hazy.

Jisung’s friends help him reach the Hospital Wing and then sit down with him on the bench by the entrance. Felix crouches down in front of him, placing his hands on Jisung’s knees. “We can’t go in yet, we have to wait,” he tells him quietly, voice soothing. “We can use this time to calm down, okay? I know it was a great shock but you have to understand that he didn’t even fall down. He was hit by a bludger and it knocked him off his broom but professor Pearson casted a spell.”

“Jisung, there’s nothing to be worried about, though it’s perfectly valid you are feeling stressed. My heart almost jumped out of my chest,” Hyunjin joins in.

“He’ll be fine?” Jisung finally speaks, voice hoarse and tired but his friends don’t seem to mind. 

“Perfectly,” Felix tells him and with his reassuring smile, Jisung feels at peace. Professor Kim lets Jisung in after a long hour of waiting, offering him a check-up first.

“I’m alright. I just want to see him.”

The Hospital Wing is scary. The whiteness of every wall, floor, furniture, bedding makes him dizzy, but he bravely takes a deep breath and keeps walking.

The bed Minho is lying on is behind a room dividing screen. His heart tightens when he sees him so pale, but he reckons it is only temporary. Jisung sits down on a stool next to the white bed and watches Minho breathe steadily. It helps him calm down completely.

He’s scared to touch Minho and harm him but his hand reaches out unconsciously and settles on the Ravenclaw’s thigh, rubbing it softly. He would spend the rest of the evening in there but he can’t — after a short while, professor Kim orders him to go, saying that Minho and he, too, must rest.

He doesn’t want to leave Minho’s side but the healer threatens to call the headmistress on him. Jisung is grateful that-at least-the man pretends to be busy with papers as he kisses Minho on the forehead and leaves. 

His friends are still waiting by the door to the Hospital Wing but when Jisung steps into the hall, Renjun is already by his side, showering him with questions. Jisung himself is confused but does his best to answer.

“I swear, I don’t know what happened today. He’s always so attentive and careful, especially during the games,” Renjun mutters and he can’t disagree.

It isn’t his place to tell anyone about the Quidditch teams’ agents scouting at Hogwarts, even if it’s Minho’s friend, so he keeps his mouth shut, hoping Minho will wake up soon. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Naturally, the first thing Jisung wants to do after waking up the next morning is to run to the Hospital Wing to see how Minho is doing. Seungmin, however, only gives him a glare, and then — ignoring his whines and pleas — grabs him and forcefully leads to a Defense class.

Jisung is sulky for the entire lesson, so Felix sneakily hands him squares of chocolate under the table, hoping it will improve his mood a little. He feels better only when Hyunjin arrives late for lunch, though.

He tells Jisung that he has just been stopped by Professor Kim, who has told him to inform Jisung that he can now visit Minho, but only for a while.

“Has he woken up?” Jisung snaps, standing up in a hurry.

“I don’t really know but he was just passed out because of the meds, they should have worn off by now.” 

Jisung quickly thanks him, then runs through the Great Hall to the Hospital Wing. Before entering, he pauses for a moment to stabilize his breath and brush the invisible dust off his pants. He pushes the door silently to open it, but not to disturb others who may be inside.

He scans the room and his heart stops when he sees Minho. Propped up on his elbows, smiling and staring at him.

“Oh, Merlin,” Jisung lets out and quickly makes his way to Minho’s bed. He wants to give him a hug like never before, but can't even get his voice out to say something.

“Hello,” Minho says, finally and pats his bed, gesturing for the Slytherin to sit.

“How are you feeling?”

“Numb? I woke up not so long ago and all I can feel is my head, throbbing.” It's nothing unusual that Minho notices his sour expression. He takes Jisung’s hand into his own and rubs it with his thumb. “Jisung, I’m fine. I’ve already had Skele-Gro for my arm. You don’t have to worry. They’ll let me out in a few days.”

How is Jisung to distrust him when his brown eyes are sparkling and his voice is so soft?

Minho seems to be a veela; beautiful but just as dangerous, yet Jisung would happily put his heart in his hands. It's a strange thought, a strange situation when Jisung has finally come to terms with his feelings. It’s an ever-burning sensation in his chest, thoughts in his head always finding their way back to Minho, heart picking up the pace when he looks at him, lips curling up at his dumb jokes.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Minho asks, snapping him out of his thoughts.

Jisung chuckles. He really wants to tell him.

“Because I can.”

The elder boy huffs in annoyance but he looks adorable, still. Jisung plans to stay next to him for the rest of the day, but Minho is vigilant. He squints his eyes, then watches him closely to read the slightest lie on his face. Jisung has always been a bad liar.

“Don’t you have Runes now?”

Jisung doesn’t even ask why Minho knows his schedule, just twists his face into a plead. “I wanna stay with you,” he whines.

“You can’t miss class just because I’m here. As soon as it ends, you can come here and stay as long as you want.”

“Kim will never let me stay late,” Jisung scoffs.

“I promise I’ll beg him to let you. But you have to go. Study well! For me and for yourself.”

Jisung can't argue with him when Minho is so charming, which is why, reluctantly, he gets up from the snow-white bed and leaves the Hospital Wing, waving goodbye to Minho before stepping out of the room. 

He’s dramatic, acting as if he will never see Minho again, but Jisung is worried. He can't help it.

The next days pass similarly — Jisung alternates between classes, the Infirmary, his dorm and the Great Hall. Minho helps him scribble some of his essays and Jisung must admit his assignments have never been better.

Even his own friends visit Minho a few times and bring him a lot of sweets. (Minho tells him in secret that he doesn’t really eat candies because of his training but he’s really grateful Jisung’s friends have thought about him.)

It’s late at night and Jisung should be sleeping in between his own sheets in the Slytherin dorms but he’s lying with Minho instead, sprawled on the stiff bed, staring at the ceiling. The sky is particularly dark that night, as if someone took a paintbrush and coated the entire sky with a thick, black paint. It looks majestic through the windows; Jisung wishes to go out with Minho and lie on the grass, cuddled up, staring into the stars, naming constellations.

Minho shifts, suddenly and throws his leg over Jisung’s hip, trying to pull him closer. There’s a smile, a delicate one, lingering on his lips, softening his features. His eyes seem to glow in the moonlight and are scanning Jisung's face before he even speaks.

Jisung feels this is the first moment in a long time that he’s so calm. No confusion, no throbbing heart, no nervousness. Everything feels at peace.

“Jisung,” Minho finally mumbles. There's no one here with them but he's whispering. These words are just for Jisung. “I'm so glad I have you.”

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

For the first time since Minho’s accident, Jisung spends the entire lunch break in the Great Hall. He chats with his friends, laughing out loud at their dumb jokes. Hyunjin is talking about something funny that’s happened in their Muggle Studies class a few periods ago but Jisung can’t focus.

His stare unconsciously wanders to where Minho is usually sitting, even though he knows the Ravenclaw isn’t there. Though his friend, Renjun, is.

The boy straightens slightly when he notices Jisung staring at him and Jisung sends him a smile. Afterall it is them who spend the most time by Minho's side in the Infirmary; a bond of tolerance for each other's presence and maybe a strange kind of friendship has formed between them.

The Ravenclaw grins back at him with a smile tenfold in sincerity that has Jisung wondering why hasn’t he befriended Renjun sooner.

After a two-hour block of Defense classes, Jisung is exhausted. With the last of his strength he makes his way to the Hospital Wing, thanking Merlin he only has one more lesson left that day.

When he enters the white room, it’s extremely quiet inside. He slowly walks over to Minho's bed covered by a screen. He can hear heavy breathing coming from behind the curtain, so hesitantly and slowly he pulls it away. Minho looks up to stare at him and his expressionless eyes make Jisung afraid to speak up.

He eyes the surroundings cautiously and notices the piece of parchment thrown onto the floor. He inhales sharply, knowing well what it means.

“Don’t read it. You’ll change your mind about me after what they’ve said.”

Jisung doesn't believe him, but it’s disrespectful to read the letter without Minho's consent, so he just picks it up from the floor and throws into the trash can. Minho snorts, and when Jisung sits down on the stool next to his bed, he doesn't even spare him a glance.

“They’re right, though. If I didn’t play Quidditch, I wouldn’t be lying here now, wasting time and I could study and get a real job.” Jisung blinks at him, confused. He has a hard time coming up with something to say but when he finally does, Minho just quirks his eyebrow at him.

“They’re brainwashing you, Minho. This is not okay. Don’t even say so.” His hand rests on Minho’s thigh, rubbing it in soft motions. “You were injured, Min-ah. It’s okay to take a break.”

The look Minho sends him makes him straighten up.

“I can’t take a break,” he splutters. “There’s a thousand wizards ready to take my spot at Mungo’s. If I don’t get in, I’m basically worthless and all the effort is down the drain.” 

Jisung opens his mouth to say something, but no words come out. He knows Minho is under pressure to be the perfect child that his parents will be proud of, but he can’t understand it, no matter how hard he tries. 

“Being a Healer might work for a while because your parents will finally see how great you are. But you love Quidditch, Minho. I can see that you do.”

“Don’t you want me to succeed?”

“Of course I—”

“And why do you act like you know me?”

The silence is deafening as the words fall from Minho's mouth. Jisung feels his heartbeat pick up as Minho's face flashes in regret. He tears his gaze away from the older boy's face and takes a deep breath.

“Jisung, I’m sorry—”

“Maybe you’re right,” Jisung interrupts him. “Maybe I don’t know you but don’t say I don’t want you to succeed because that’s just— that’s just pure bullshit. I want you to be happy.”

Minho calls out to him as Jisung gets up and walks away, but he doesn't stop. He opens the door with a flourish, pulling the person holding the handle forward.

“Oh,” Renjun lets out, straightening up. Jisung passes him, body buzzing. He turns around one last time and speaks up loudly, so Minho can hear him too.

“Tell him to stop acting like a kid. Maybe you’ll get through his skull, since you _actually_ know him. I don’t really want to fight.”

Then he leaves, and if he misses his last class and buries himself in the covers with an ugly feeling burning in his gut, it’s on him. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung experiences the stubbornness of the Ravenclaws first-hand when Renjun gives him no moment to breathe and urges him at every turn to talk to Minho.

He isn’t angry with him at all, but a twinge in his stomach accompanies him every time Minho is mentioned. He knows Minho is always on the verge when his parents reach out to him, but that doesn't justify what he said and Jisung might have a Minho-shaped soft spot but he’s annoyed and has the right to feel hurt. (“He doesn’t deserve any of the candies we gave him,” Felix tells him one evening with his fingers running through Jisung’s hair. He can’t help but snort and Felix lights up. Jisung thinks he might really be a fairy.)

“I’m going back to the dorms,” he says after dinner on the last Sunday of January.

“Do you want to meet up later and drink something?” Hyunjin asks him. Jisung only sends him an apologetic smile, but as he turns around, his eyes roll in annoyance. Maybe Minho said something stupid, but that doesn't mean Jisung will keep mopping now or need a permanent babysitter.

As Jisung enters the dormitory, Sunwoo is reading something, lying on his bed. He raises his hand to wave at him, and Jisung curls his lips in a small smile. Crawling into his own bed, he sighs and reaches out to the nightstand to grab one of the books out of the pile. He seriously needs to return them to the library. The one he opens turns out to be pretty interesting, full of short real-life stories about Curse-Breakers.

His eyelids feel heavy, though and it’s hard to concentrate so he ends up reading the same pages a few times to finally make sense of them.

“Jisung, someone’s here to see you,” he hears Sunwoo’s voice. He blinks a few times and sees the other Slytherin walking back to his bed, leaving a timid Minho by the open door.

Jisung jumps off his bed quickly, straightening his T-Shirt. His heart is trembling when he speaks up. “I thought you’d still be in the Infirmary.”

Minho smiles at him shyly. The expression is unfamiliar; and Jisung realizes that maybe he doesn’t know him. “It’s been almost a week and professor Kim said my arm looks ‘excellent’ and let me go.”

Jisung lets out an ‘aha’ and they stand in the doorway of his dormitory like that, awkward like never until Minho asks: “Do you have a moment so we can talk?” and Jisung shrugs but he’s already closing the door and leading Minho out of the Slytherin common room.

He wonders if he has had to wait long for someone to let him inside and who has. He doesn’t ask. The dungeons are much colder than his dorm and Jisung finds himself shivering. It’s cliche and strange how it has become their thing but Minho notices and takes off his hoodie.

“I’ll be fine,” he says, pushing the sweatshirt into Jisung’s arms. The material is soft and smells like the Ravenclaw boy when he puts it on; feels like home and much more.

Jisung doesn't know why their legs lead them up the stairs to the Astronomy Tower, but he's not going to complain. The air is sharp, fresh, taking away the tiredness, filling his lungs as he takes a deep breath. He steps forward to the railing, waiting for Minho to join him.

Looking down is more terrifying than when he was flying on a broomstick with Minho. The earth from this height is nothing but an abyss. It’s scary.

When Minho stands next to him and mirrors the way he's leaning over the railing, their shoulders brush. 

“I’m sorry for getting angry at you,” Minho says and his words seem to fly around with the wind. “It’s not an excuse but all the scouting situation, the injury and my parents… I’ve been really stressed out. It was wrong of me to unleash it on you.”

Jisung dares to look to the side. Minho's eyes, already on him, seem to be piercing into his soul. He lets out a soft gasp, surprised by the sincerity of his expression. “And I apologize for saying you don’t know me because that’s not true. You are— I sometimes feel like you are the only person that actually knows me.”

The smile on his lips is humble, apologetic. Jisung leans his head over to the side to rest it on Minho’s shoulder.

“I won’t lie and say it didn’t hurt me but I feel like you were right. I still don’t know you and I probably never will but I want to. I want to get to know every part of you.”

“Ji—”

“I just don’t really feel like hearing you say it every time you get angry is okay.”

“I won’t say it ever again,” Minho is quick to assure him but Jisung knows he can’t promise him that.

A strange sense of bravery and courage fills him up from head to toe.

“I think I’m in love with you,” Jisung says and maybe it’s too soon. Maybe it’s the worst moment but he’s sure there will never be a better one. “I really think I’m in love with you.”

He looks up at Minho with a soft smile and a light heart. He feels terrified. Staring at Minho always knocks air out of his lungs, makes his knees weak and heart beat faster. This time, it makes him feel calm. Minho’s face is glowing in the moonlight, making the shock more visible.

“Are you sure?” he asks as if Jisung hasn’t thought about it at all. He asks, as if feeling he’s not worthy. He asks, unsure. Jisung breaks out in a smile.

“Never been so sure about anything in my life.”

“I like you too,” Minho tells him, wrapping his arm around Jisung’s waist and pulls him closer. “I like you so much.”

Jisung doesn’t need big words. Minho’s lips pressing a soft kiss on his temple is more than enough. Jisung feels light as a feather.

He turns to face the Ravenclaw and takes a look at him. He focuses on how bright Minho's face is, how his eyes shine, so similar to the stars above their heads. Minho looks at him as if he’s seeing him for the first time, but yet with love. And maybe that love has been there before and Jisung has been too blind to notice, but it’s burning, clear. Adoration is burning in his eyes.

“I don’t know what’s next,” Minho whispers and there’s a hint of nervousness in his voice that makes Jisung’s heart tremble.

“It’s okay. We’ll figure it out. Together.”

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

As soon as the weather gets more bearable and February feels more springy than it should, Minho and Jisung sneak out of the castle.

Minho hushes him when he laughs too loudly.

“I had no idea you were such a romantic,” Jisung teases as he’s spreading a blanket over the grass near the Great Lake.

“I’m not. I’m just making your dreams come true.”

“Yah, it still means you’re sappy.”

The Ravenclaw lies down on the blanket, delicately wraps his fingers around Jisung’s wrist and pulls him closer. He rests comfortably, with his cheek pressed against the Minho’s chest. He feels warm all over with his arms wrapped around him tightly.

Jisung knows his boyfriend is the brightest person he knows. He has had no idea, however, that with coming up with the idea of casting a warming spell on their clothes, Minho will completely blow his mind. Though, he thinks, the heat of Minho’s body next to his might’ve been enough.

“We’ve chosen a good night to stargaze. It’s the clearest sky in a long time.”

Jisung props up on his elbow with a smirk. “I thought it was just an excuse to cuddle in a romantic setting.”

“Partially.”

He lets out a dramatic sigh, shifting to rest his head on Minho's lap.

Pointing up to the sky, he says: “Did you know that some light we’re seeing is from dead stars? The light has to travel an incredibly long distance to be visible from Earth so it’s pretty logical but still a strange feeling.” 

Minho humms. His hand wanders to Jisung’s hair and his fingers run through it, sending shivers down his spine. He closes his eyes, just for a moment and feels himself doze off. He blinks away the feeling and moves to change his position again.

“Merlin, do you ever stop moving?” Minho snorts at him but lets him wrap his arms around his waist. 

Their faces are close to each other, close enough for Jisung to count Minho’s eyelashes or to plant a kiss on his lips just by moving an inch forward.

He wants to and Minho seems to be able to read his mind now because he asks: “Can I kiss you?”.

It’s their first kiss ever when they finally lean in but it’s everything contrary to how everyone describes the feeling. No fireworks, sparkles flying, mind spinning. Jisung feels at peace, calm and steady when Minho kisses him.

The world stops when their lips collide and everything feels like it’s falling into place. Minho’s lip taste like freshly ripe cherries — sweet yet there’s a hint of sourness that lingers on Jisung’s own and he wants more. He feels Minho's hands steadying him on his sides as they sit up and he swings his leg over Minho’s lap to straddle him. 

The touch is hot on his bare skin, right under the fabric of his hoodie. He leans in again, breath still unsteady. Minho is smiling into the kiss and he can’t help himself, either. Their teeth clash and Minho falls back, laughing.

Jisung doesn’t move, heartbeat fast, ringing loudly in his ears. Minho looks prettier than ever with his hair pushed back and face lit up in a smile. Jisung thinks it might be too much for him too handle. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

They have spent the Valentine's Day trip to Hogsmeade in the Room of Requirement instead, drinking iced americano and eating the cheesecake the house elves had prepared for them. They have preferred it to pushing through the crowds of students in the town; always better alone. Minho likes coming to the Room with Jisung, even if they aren't doing anything particularly special. And if Jisung agrees to read for him or tell him stories made up on spot, it’s like heaven. 

Being with Jisung is easy. 

It’s evenings spent in silence and eating late at the Kitchens because they lost track of time on their date and missed the dinner. It's arms wrapped around each other most of the time, calming touches and tender kisses. It’s chasing each other through the beach on the blazing sand and cold nights while cuddled up in the library. 

Everytime he looks at Jisung, he can feel the tingling sensation, the way his smile tugs on his heart and knocks out of his lungs. Being with Jisung feels like love in the purest form.

This time, they have decided to actually go on the trip to Hogsmeade, but Jisung has agreed to ditch the deserted Hogwarts only when Minho has promised they’ll spend time away from everyone. They leave the castle earlier than most of the students, and the town is only waking up when they reach it. It’s a quite warm morning, and the sun is breaking through the clouds, although if it weren't for their enchanted clothes, they’d probably be very bothered by the piercing chilly wind. With fingers intertwined, they swing around their arms like little kids and walk through the streets of the village.

“What did you plan?” Jisung asks when they pass the major part of the shops.

“There’s a pond and a tea shop near the border of Hogsmeade. I’m pretty sure no one goes there, so…” 

The entrance to the tea shop draws attention; it’s supposedly a new building, all clean and full of plants and somehow fits into the landscape. The bell hung over the door signals their arrival, and when the cashier shows up behind the counter, the otherworldly smell of fruit appears with her and almost knocks them off their feet. Large glass windows surround the entire front, golden rays of morning sun peek into the building, kissing the wooden floor with warmth. Everything looks cozy, painted in pastels and soft glitter.

Their hands brush as they look around the display, making them giggle quietly. The cashier tells them about which pastries have turned out best this morning. Minho personally thinks everything looks Merlin tier but he lets Jisung choose whatever he likes.

The younger insists on paying, though, and buys them earl gray and takeaway sweets for breakfast. Minho links their arms together when they leave the shop, face scrunching coming in contact with the morning sun.

He leads Jisung behind the building, where the grass is high and still wet with dew. He takes every step with confidence, leaving Jisung wondering how many times he’s wandered around the castle, around the forests and towns in search of stunning places to spend magical moments in.

Holding Jisung’s hand tightly in his own, he breaks through the thicket, and Jisung begins to believe that the tall grass meadow will never end. That is, until Minho stops in his tracks and turns back to smile at him. 

“Welcome to the little paradise,” he says.

When Jisung stands on tiptoe to look over his shoulder, he thinks Minho is more than right. Before them spreads out a landscape like out of a fairy tale. Dense thickets form a barrier between Hogsmeade and _this little paradise_ , shielding it from the prying eyes of people. It looks as if the fairy dust is floating above the ground, swirling and glistening in the March sun.

Jisung feels like he is floating above the ground as he takes a step towards a small pond.

He looks around and his eyes lock with Minho’s. They say nothing. In a strange way, Minho's smile, aimed only at him, and his eyes, full of fire, make warmth spread all over his body and it’s more pleasant than the heat of the sun.

They sit on large stones, even though there’s a bench nearby. It seems to be made by magic or the trees themselves; the roots and branches form it as a whole, as if the plants wanted to create a more pleasant atmosphere by sharing a piece of themselves.

“You keep surprising me every time,” Jisung mumbles, tilting his head back to bathe in the sun. It's too early in the year for the weather to be this pleasant, but the whole place is surrounded by magic stronger than any other. It gives a sense of security, knowing that this is the world they belong to.

“It’s a good thing, right?” Minho’s voice sounds uncertain but Jisung humms.

“The best,” he tells the elder boy, fluttering his eyes open to assure him with his stare. “Makes me keep wondering how you find these places, though.”

“Books in the library are much more than just science if you know where to look.”

“Ah, yes. You’re such a little nerd,” Jisung teases him, watching the warm blush spread across Minho’s nose and cheeks. Minho looks at him and licks his lower lip.

The timid glint in his eyes makes him seem unsure, even and he shifts his gaze to the clear water in the pond, as if for Jisung not to read anything from his stare. He gives the Ravenclaw time; he has learnt that when it comes to Minho, it’s the best solution.

“I’ve got something to tell you,” he says finally and Jisung straightens, eyebrow quirking up. “Remember the whole Quidditch scouting? Well, Ballycastle Bats have actually owled me a few days ago. I don’t— I don’t know.”

They haven’t talked about it in a long time, Jisung realizes, and maybe Minho has been as scared as him to bring it up and say something wrong and mess things up.

A hesitant smile tugs at his lips. “Min-ah, that’s absolutely amazing.”

The Ballycastle Bats have been the Champions of the British and Irish Quidditch League more than Jisung can remember and most of the players are in their National teams as well. Them reaching out to Minho isn’t surprising—at least to Jisung—but it still gives him chills out of pride.

“What did they say?”

“They want me to play for them when I finish school and, of course, I wouldn’t make it to the line-up immediately but they think I’m really talented for my age.” He runs his fingers over the water, destroying the calm surface. He looks up at Jisung, an uncertain expression on his face. “I want to agree.”

Jisung can’t hide that it surprises him. His eyebrows rise and lips form a big smile which Minho hesitantly returns. “I mean— I still want to be a Healer. At least to have a back up plan if the Quidditch thing doesn’t… work out.” Jisung’s hand wanders to Minho’s to squeeze it tightly in a gesture of unconditional support and pride. “I’m going to owl them back that I’m agreeing to play if I can just train with them until I finish my internship at Mungo’s or Avery’s.”

“I’m sure everything will turn out just fine,” Jisung breathes out. “I’m so proud of you. Much more than you can imagine.”

Minho leans in slowly and presses a wet kiss to his cheek. It feels even more magical than the place surrounding them, Minho’s kiss light as a butterfly. The Ravenclaw goes back to his more relaxed self after Jisung assures him that everything will be alright and happily munches on the cherry pastries, still warm as if taken out of the oven mere seconds ago.

Their thighs touch, squeezed together when they move to sit on the ground scattered in flowers.

“The NEWTs are coming up,” Minho mutters, swinging his legs up in the air as he lies on his stomach. “I’m going to study a lot. Just so you know. So if I disappear for a while, I’m probably in the Room of Requirement.” Jisung humms, tracing Minho’s jawline and features with his finger. “You can come with me anytime you want but it’ll be boring, so…”

“I don’t really want to distract you. I know how important exams are for you. Just don’t stay up too late, or Renjun will literally hex you.” His thumb moves over Minho’s pink lips, curled up in a soft smile.

The Ravenclaw leans in to kiss him, light as butterflies flying around them. Jisung moves his hand to cup Minho’s face, pulling him in closer. Minho hasn’t been mistaken when he’s said this place is a little paradise. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung realizes they haven’t told anyone they’re dating when Minho joins him and his friends during one of their scheduled study evenings. Seungmin and Felix are discussing something about dragons, their whispers too loud to belong in the library. Hyunjin is scribbling notes on the margin of his Potions book and Jeongin keeps annoying Jisung by kicking the table leg while reading. Minho saves him.

He greets everyone in a hushed whisper and plants a soft kiss on Jisung’s cheek. The table goes into absolute silence; Jisung frowns, not really keeping up with what is going on.

“Merlin’s beard, what the hell was that?” Jeongin splutters. Felix's eyes go wide as he smacks the younger Ravenclaw on the arm.

Jisung smiles, exchanging a look with Minho. “Right,” he chuckles, the awkward atmosphere flushing his cheeks pink. “We’re dating.”

“About time.”

“Congrats!”

“Didn’t see that coming.”

“Dear Merlin!”

The group speaks up at once, making it hard to understand but Jisung sends them a grateful grin anyway and they all go back to studying. And if someone notices Jisung squeezing Minho’s hand under the table, they don’t mention it. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The “not making fun of Jisung and Minho being clingy” phase doesn’t last long.

It’s not like they’re making out or even cuddling around them but it seems like Jeongin has made it his personal agenda to yell how gross they are at all times. (Jisung has to admit he’s kissed Minho once just to rile the younger boy up but that has been it.)

Somehow, Minho’s little circle of friends has joined Jisung’s during group hangouts and fit just right. It’s been strange at first, too see them get along so well despite not really knowing each other. But, Jisung supposes, you might know someone only for a little part of your life and yet feel like you’ve known them for an eternity. 

Jisung's eyes fall shut and suddenly, he's all too aware of the april sunlight embracing him. He can imagine the way the other students swoon over Minho, stare at him with starry eyes, watch him during his games, enchanted and they all eventually feel the same pattern of entangled thoughts and heartbeats picking up. It’s exactly how Jisung feels whenever he looks at Minho.

But even if they all swoon over him, steal glances and laugh at his bad jokes, he lets himself imagine that Minho prefers him over everybody else.

Someone squeezes his hand and he doesn’t have to open his eyes to know it’s Minho. He’s right there, with his back against the tree, letting Jisung rest on his lap. He can hear their friends shouting in the distance, something that sounds more like cries for help and then, “Changbin, I will hecking murder you if you don’t let me go!”.

Minho snorts, most likely watching the scene with his own eyes and seeing no harm is happening. “Are you napping?” he whispers. Jisung flutters his eyes open and groans when sunlight falls on his face. He moves quickly to avoid getting blinded and rests his head on Minho’s shoulder.

“I wasn’t. Just enjoying the peaceful weekend.”

When he looks straight ahead, he sees their friends playing near the Great Lake. Other students might see them as the bunch of kids, sending weird glances their way, but that’s what they really are. Kids. They may be acting too loud, squeaking and splashing cool water over each other, but Jisung is glad they’re spending time together, taking a break from schoolwork, even just for one short day.

Felix suddenly points his finger at them, and even while sitting under the tree, away from the rest, Jisung knows that it doesn’t mean anything good. Then Chan takes out his wand and mutters a spell, sending a stream of water at them. They don't even manage to dodge; it hits them too quickly and wets their clothes.

“Your stupid games are ending right this moment!” Minho yells and stands up, jogging down to the lake. The group is running around, trying to escape the Ravenclaw chasing them. Jeongin shrieks when Minho grabs his shirt.

“No! I’ve been good! I’m Jisung’s best friend! Don’t hurt me!”

“Let’s see. Jisung, do you mind?” he yells, turning to face Jisung. Jeongin tries to run away but Minho’s grip is strong.

“Not at all!” Jisung screams back, though he isn’t sure what Minho is doing. He bursts into laughter, eyes going wide as Minho jumps into the lake with Jeongin in his arms. He can’t even imagine how cold the water must be but with everyone yelling, he supposes it’s nothing pleasant.

“You did this to your own housemate! I can’t believe it! What a traitor! And what if I drowned?”

“I didn’t let you go! And besides, you told me yourself that you’d want a swimming team at Hogwarts! It’s not like you can’t swim. I remember!” Minho keeps Jeongin close as they approach Jisung by the tree. The younger, despite screaming his lungs out, doesn’t seem to be so mad.

“I’ll get you something sweet from the Kitchens later, okay?” Minho promises, trying to plop down on the blanket and reaching out his arms to pull Jisung into an embrace.

“Nah, you’re all wet,” Jisung winces.

He grabs his wand to cast a warming up spell at both his boyfriend and Jeongin. The rest of the group must think the danger of being thrown into the ice-cold lake is over and they lie around on the grass, breathing heavily from all the running. Jeongin is sulking, ignoring Felix’s pleas to forgive the betrayal. “You’re a prefect, Lee. How could you?” His stubborn demeanor doesn’t last long with the elder Hufflepuff clinging onto him with puppy eyes.

Minho snuggles into Jisung as soon as his clothes are dry again. With sun embracing him just like Minho and his friends giggling about stupid stuff, Jisung thinks he doesn’t need anything else. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

With NEWTs coming up soon, Jisung notices how Minho gets visibly more engrossed in schoolwork every day. After classes, he takes a quick break for a nap and goes back to revising and practising his spells and potions in the Room of Requirement. Jisung often accompanies him just for the sake of being together. He makes Minho rest more often than he would if he was alone and ensures he doesn’t stay up too late.

“I feel like you’re babysitting me,” Minho mumbles when they’re cuddled up on the couch one night. Jisung humms.

“I’m just being a good boyfriend.”

The Ravenclaw props on his elbow. His eyes hypnotize and lure Jisung closer. “The best boyfriend,” Minho corrects him, planting a kiss on his lips right after and jumping up to keep practicing non-verbal spell casting.

Jisung watches him for a long moment—how he scrunches his face in concentration and smiles under his breath when the spell works out—and his heart dangerously skips a beat.

He feels just the same a few days later when Minho asks him if he wanted to go on a study date. How can he not want to spend every second he can with the person he’s so in love with? How can he not want to hold Minho close in his arms? How can he not want to sneak glances at him while he’s so focused on studying he forgets where he is? How can he?

Naturally, he agrees and they go back to Minho’s dormitory to grab a few sheets of parchment. While Minho is looking for the paper in the pits of his trunk, Jisung can’t help but wander around the room. His gaze falls upon the nightstand next to his boyfriend’s bed. He squints, coming closer and a smile crawls onto his face. 

“You framed it?”

Minho looks up, confused before he lies his eyes on the picture Jisung is pointing to. It’s the Slytherin, kissing the top of Byeol’s head. It’s been taken during holidays and Jisung remembers attaching a few polaroid shots of him and his cat to one of the letters he’s exchanged with Minho.

It’s a different thing, though, knowing Minho has kept it on display, has framed it and is most probably looking at it after waking up. Jisung’s stomach feels funny when he notices the embarrassed blush on Minho’s ears.

“It’s super cute,” he says. “I might have to take a lot of pictures of you, too, and stick them all over my room so I don’t miss you too much during summer.”

“Plenty time’s left.”

“Yeah. And you can visit me when you’re free.” Minho takes a few steps forward and hooks his arms over Jisung’s waist. The Slytherin reaches out to push the glasses up Minho’s nose, making him scrunch his face. He humms into Jisung’s lips before diving in and kissing him delicately.

“I’ll always be free for you. And for Byeol. I have to see the baby in person.” Jisung gasps, smacking the giggling Minho on the shoulder. He dodges the pillow the younger boy throws at him and runs out of the room, leaving him behind. His laugh echoes through the halls as Jisung tries to keep up with him.

He doesn’t feel slightly embarrassed, even when students are staring at them, even when he jumps onto Minho’s back, sending them both flying to the ground. Minho groans but there’s a wide grin plastered to his face.

“I think you broke my back,” he breathes. “I’ve got a Quidditch Cup to win and NEWTs to take, help me up, you little demon.”

“If there wasn’t a bunch of first years staring at us right now, I’d kick you in the face,” Jisung whispers but obediently sits up and pulls Minho up, then linking their fingers together like it’s a habit. With Minho, Jisung likes all the routines even more. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

When the weather gets a lot warmer and Jeongin can again make flower crowns for Felix, Jisung notices how tense Minho is. He oscillates between constant Quidditch training and studying for NEWTs, so every second away from the pitch and books, Jisung makes him rest.

“I’m sorry it’s like this,” he whispers, cheek pressed where Jisung’s heart is. His arm loosely lies over the Slytherin’s waist, fingers playing with the hem of his T-Shirt. “I’ll make it up to you.”

“Shut up. There’s nothing to make up. The exams and the Cup are your top priority now and I understand it. We’ve got all the time in the world.”

Minho’s eyes are shining when they lock with Jisung’s. Or maybe it’s just how he sees them. Burning with passion and love.

“All the time in the world,” he repeats, resting his head back on Jisung’s chest. They have drawn the curtains of his bed in the Ravenclaw’s dormitory and silenced it with a spell so they don’t disturb the rest of his roommates with their late night talking. “The match is in two days. You’ll be cheering for me, right?”

“Hmmm… that’s a little too traitorous towards my own house. My heart is torn apart,” Jisung fakes a sniff. Minho scoffs at him, pinching his side. “Hey! I might not show up.”

“You have to,” the Ravenclaw props on his elbow, voice serious. “You’re my lucky charm.”

Words get stuck in Jisung’s throat and it feels like he can’t breathe. Minho is looking at him, watching him with tenderness and affection written all over his face. He’s hiding nothing, not even the smallest part of his soul. It’s as if Jisung is falling in love with him all over again during moments like this.

His heartbeat picks up and he’s sure Minho can sense it with his hand over his chest. He doesn’t feel any embarrassment.

“I’ll even wear your hoodie, then.”

“The one you stole? I’m still waiting to get it back.”

“You will never.”

Jisung doesn't know if he’s losing his breath because of the way Minho looks at him or because he starts tickling him so hard that his stomach hurts. Maybe both answers are true. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

The day of the Slytherin vs Ravenclaw game is a tough one. Jisung has to force Minho to eat something other than a banana for breakfast, even though he complains that he’s not hungry. 

“Okay, but you need strength, you dumbass.”

“Bananas are full of potassium,” Minho says but he shuts his mouth quickly and grabs the sandwich Jisung has prepared for him when the Slytherin glares his way.

Minho has been sulky when he’s seen that Jisung isn’t wearing his sweatshirt, but he has had to get over it when Jisung has told him that it’s too hot outside for him to boil in a hoodie. The blue hearts painted on his cheeks and the cheering he has promised him must be enough.

It’s his first game after the accident and it’s the last game of his Hogwarts career. Jisung can’t be there in the changing room with him and the team to listen Minho’s final speech as the captain but he wishes him good luck in his own way, by kissing him hard and long.

Never in his life has he been invested in a Quidditch match like this. His throat is sore and his own housemates are sending him funny looks for cheering so loudly for another team but he doesn’t seem to care. 

When Chaeyoung catches the Golden Snitch and the match ends with Ravenclaw winning, Jisung runs to the pitch where Minho is already waiting. He jumps, wrapping his legs around the elder’s waist. Before he dives into another kiss, he stares at Minho and wipes the tears off his cheeks so no one sees.

He doesn’t care about the whole school seeing them and the teams whistling behind them, laughing at their public display of affection. All Jisung can think about is how Minho has turned his world upside down and robbed him out his heart, no intention of ever giving it back.

“I love you,” he whispers into Minho’s lips, sure. He squeezes his eyelids tight and it’s scary to let them open, to face Minho and to show him it’s what he feels. He slips out of Minho’s embrace and stands on his own legs, even though it’s hard when his knees seem so weak.

What he sees when he finally flutters his eyes open exceeds all his expectations, all his dreams and fantasies.

The look that Minho sends him sucks the air out of the entire world, and out of Jisung’s lungs, his eyes like a magnet and Jisung can’t look away, can’t breathe, can’t speak.

“I love you more,” Minho whispers back. He lets out a breath, as if he hasn’t expected the confession either. “I love you much more than you can imagine.”

Jisung believes him without a second thought. He pulls the boy closer, so close there’s no space left between them and kisses him, hard, with the confession still lingering on his lips.

It doesn’t last long, because someone is pulling Minho away from him, screaming congratulations and pulling him into hugs. And they both laugh, unaffected, because there are still billions of kisses to share. 

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Jisung holds Minho's hand as the Ravenclaw looks at Hogwarts one last time from the path to the Hogsmeade Station. It's a strange feeling, knowing that in a year he will be closing this chapter of his life with the same sadness as well. Closing a chapter and writing the next one, with more experience and dreams.

Jisung doesn’t feel like an adult yet but he’s grown these past years, every second he’s spent in the castle leaving a mark in his mind.

“Can I be really cheesy for a second?” Minho asks him when they’re waiting for the rest of their friends in one of the compartments. Jisung nods, trying to prepare himself for what’s to come. When Minho speaks up again, however, he realizes he’ll never be prepared for any of Minho’s acts of affection. “This year has been the best one out of all seven because I fell in love with you.”

He doesn’t get a chance to reply with something equally soft because Seungmin swings the door aside and yells: “Stop making out, we’re already here!”. Jisung simply rolls his eyes at him and crosses arms over his chest.

Their group of friends rolls inside the small compartment, occupying all the available space. Felix stands up to open the small window and let in some fresh air. Jisung sighs. His eyelids seem to be closing by themselves and he doesn't know why. He’s slept pretty well at night, though it’s been hot.

Since March onwards, the weather has been getting more and more unbearable. Now that the real summer has begun, Jisung is sure that he will be spending the next two months by the pool with iced drinks in hand.

“What are you guys doing this summer?” Chan asks after they stop complaining about how hot it’s in the train. They must be in Aberdeen by now, though Jisung isn’t sure. He can’t really figure out the route of Hogwarts Express even after six years. He wishes it didn’t take so long to travel back home, especially when him and Eunji have to use portkeys to get back to Falkirk from London, anyways.

“I’ll most likely die of boredom at home,” groans Jeongin. Him and Hyunjin are the only ones whose families still live in Korea, the rest scattered all over the world.

Jisung wonders if it’s been fate that has brought them all together.

“Mom’s sending me to a Mediwizard course,” Hyunjin announces. 

Minho’s eyes shoot up at that. “Oh, that’s cool!”

“You start your internship in August, too, right?”

“Yeah, if I get in. I just have to wait for the NEWTs results.”

“There’s no one better for this spot than you,” Hyunjin tells him.

Jisung observes in adoration how Minho sends the younger Hufflepuff a sheepish smile.

“What are you doing during summer, Jisung?” Changbin asks. Jisung quirks an eyebrow, surprised at his genuine curiosity.

“I’m just— Minho’s coming over, so… yeah. I’ll be showing him around Falkirk if weather isn’t too bad.” 

The compartment erupts in ‘ _I told you so_ ’s and ‘ _I’m glad I live on the other side of the world_ ’s. It makes Minho giggle so Jisung takes no offence.

“You’re all just jealous I’ll be having the summer of my life with Byeol.”

“And me. Your boyfriend,” Jisung corrects him, trying to move away but Minho’s arm quickly wraps around his waist, keeping him in place. It’s not like he has a lot of space to maneuver, either. “I knew you were just using me to steal my cat. That’s cruel.”

At some point, Seungmin and Changbin leave because they ‘ _can’t take Minho and Jisung bickering like they’ve been married for thirty years and ruining the travel_ ’. The rest sends them knowing looks, though but it seems like they don’t care about them a tiny bit.

They get to King’s Cross at dusk, everyone glad to stretch their legs after a long journey. Eunji is already waiting when they leave the train hand in hand. She greets them with a smile and Jisung appreciates a lot her not making it awkward.

He’s filled her in on the situation a few weeks ago, even before he’s offered it to Minho.

His parents are still in the States working on the medicine because apparently it’s being modified a lot and they aren’t coming back home anytime soon. It’s not like Minho minds — all they’ve written to him is that they hope he hasn’t messed up on the exams and he hasn’t even had it in him to tell them about his future plans. He isn’t doing any of it for them, anymore.

Jisung has been very nervous to ask him to stay with him and his family for a while, just so they can spend some time together before he gets the NEWTs results and begins his internship. Jisung is sure he will get in.

And now he can feel Minho’s hand trembling in his.

“You don’t have to worry. Byeol won’t be greeting us on the platform,” he whispers into his ear, jokingly, to ease the tension. Minho sends him a small smile and squeezes his hand.

Eunji, just like last time, is the first to notice Dad in the crowd. She runs over to hug him tightly, then says something that makes him nod and they both turn to look at them. Jisung can't help but laugh when Minho gives him a panicked look.

“It’s okay. I’m right here.”

Jisung stops the cart with their trunks, pulling it to the side, then slowly walks towards his dad, still gripping Minho's hand tightly in his to reassure him.

If Minho was this nervous about meeting his _Chill Dad_ , then Jisung, if he were to meet his parents one day, would probably pass out from stress (that is actually justified).

“Don’t scare him, dad,” he says but his lips are already curled up in a smile. “I hate that there’s so many people but, meet my boyfriend, Minho.”

He watches them exchange awkward smiles and realizes it must be nerve-wrecking for his father, too. 

Eunji giggles, hand covering her mouth as Minho says: “Nice to meet you, sir.”

“Jisung has written so much about you, I feel like I know you just s much as he does.”

“Dad!”

Jisung huffs. Minho seems more relaxed now, eyebrow rised at Jisung in curiosity. He doesn’t let the elder boy comment anything, pulling him by his hand towards the gate vigorously.

“The portkey activates in seven minutes,” Eunji reminds them as they rush to the Cubitt Park to find a place to teleport without any muggles seeing them. She has already enchanted her bag with _Capacious Extremis_ to fit all their luggage just like she does every time they have to use the portkey. “Five!” she exclaims over her shoulder and points to an empty picnic spot, hidden by bushes. “You ready, dad?” Eunji asks softly.

They always have to make sure their dad is safe, especially when travelling by magic.

“It’ll be quick,” Jisung mutters, more to himself than to anyone else because he hates the portkeys too. 

When they touch the old newspaper lying on the grass at the same time, Jisung feels like he’s about to throw up, the piercing feeling in his stomach unbearable. He breathes out in relief when his feet finally hit the ground. He looks around, taking in his surroundings and feels a sudden rush of peace fill him up.

“Welcome to Falkirk,” he mumbles to Minho, linking their arms together.

“I already love it.”

“Wait till you see the actual town.”

Eunji sets their luggage in Jisung’s room and yells about taking a nap before disappearing in her bedroom. Jisung shakes his head, already used to it. Minho, on the other hand, seems awkward, puzzled even as he looks around the whole place. Jisung shows him every corner of the house in hopes he’ll feel more at ease soon.

When they get to the kitchen, Jisung sees Byeol lying on one of the island stools and knows Minho has noticed him too.

“Oh Merlin, he’s even cuter in person,” he mumbles, hand already stroking the ginger fur. As Jisung stares at them both, Byeol cuddling up to Minho’s hand, he realizes they look pretty alike. His heart skips a bit and he giggles at the thought. “What are you laughing at?”

“You two are just so adorable…”

“We are, right? But he’s cuter. Just look at him. Oh, dear.”

Jisung realizes Minho probably won't let Byeol out of his sight, enamoured by the kitten. He steps closer and strokes him behind the ear. “Don’t you dare steal my boyfriend, you understand me?”

“Don’t worry, you’re not getting rid of me anytime soon,” Minho tells him. His hand wanders to Jisung’s hair, pushing it back as he just stares at him with a smile. The younger grows more embarrassed and looks away, cheeks reddening.

His dad saves him from passing out on the spot when he bursts into the kitchen. “Are you guys hungry? Dinner will be ready soon.”

“I actually feel really gross after seven hours on the train. Do you want to take a shower, too, Min-ah?” 

“Oh, yeah. That’d be great.”

Jisung ignores the way his dad is hopelessly failing at trying not to stare at them and takes Minho to the bathroom upstairs, busying himself with finding something to wear later as the elder boy is showering. Just as he’s finished, Minho comes back, smiling, dressed in a loose T-Shirt and sweats, hair wet and messy. Jisung can’t help himself and he steps closer, kissing the grin off his face.

“You stink.” Jisung huffs in fake annoyance because he knows it’s true. One of too many reasons he hates summer. “I’ll be downstairs.”

“With Byeol?” he asks. Minho doesn’t reply but with the sheepish smile lingering on his lips, Jisung already knows the answer.

He disappears into the bathroom and takes his time in the shower, body relaxing in an instant as he steps in. When he’s done, he feels much better. He sniffs, enjoying the smell of his strawberry shampoo in the air. 

He leaves the room and then heads towards the stairs, but stops in his tracks when he hears his name coming from downstairs.

“It’s not hard to see that you care about Jisung. But just so you know,” his dad says, the stern voice unfamiliar. “You might have your magic but if you ever hurt him... I’ll hunt you down.”

Minho doesn’t hesitate. “If I ever do something that hurts him, feel free to kick my ass.”

Jisung tries to surpass a giggle, covering his mouth with his hand. His heart feels light when he steps into the kitchen. His dad’s expression is much softer than his voice from a moment ago when he calls for Eunji and serves them delicious dinner. Minho tells him how it’s even better than the food served at Hogwarts and Jisung doesn’t even doubt that he’s being genuine, his face delighted with every bite. Somehow, with Minho occupying a seat by their family table, things seem complete.

After dinner, they go upstairs and nap, cuddled up on the king-sized bed. Jisung takes his time to look at Minho when he wakes up, before shaking him awake as an idea pops in his mind.

The night is falling but he feels energized.

“Let’s go to the beach,” he says. Minho blinks at him and nods, eyes lighting up.

“Is this our first date outside of Hogwarts?”

Jisung shrugs, already jumping out of his bed. They run down the stairs quickly, screaming something about leaving to his dad watching TV in the living room and into the cold air. They stop at the front yard, hand in hand.

“You ready for the adventure?” Minho asks, voice dripping in honey. Jisung feels the familiar tingling sensation and they’re apparating without him having a chance to answer.

But as they land on the beach just nearby to Falkirk, Jisung kisses Minho, more passionately than he ever has and it serves as one. Every single day by Minho’s side seems like an adventure and if it’s what he’s meant then Jisung is ready, with all of his heart. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> please leave a comment and kudos and send me a message if you'd like !! thank you for dedicating your time to read hearts don't break ♡
> 
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